Talks held with Iran over jailed UK couple, David Lammy says, as he addresses proposed prisoner swap

The UK has been holding talks with Iran over a British couple jailed in Tehran, says Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy, as he addressed a proposed prisoner swap.

The family of Lindsay and Craig Foreman, who have been detained in Iran since January 2025, are calling for the UK government to exchange Iranian convicted stalker Richard Jan for the pair.

Mr Foreman told Sky News that Iranian authorities had signalled their interest in Jan, who is serving a life sentence and has been dubbed the UK's "worst stalker", and his release could be used to secure their freedom.

On the proposed prisoner swap, Mr Lammy told Sky's Trevor Phillips: "Of course, arrangements can be made of that kind, but the specifics on this would not be right. And I'm not sure from what I've heard that this is… credible".

Mr Lammy, who is also the justice secretary, said he could not go into detail on their case because it would "undermine the discussions that we're having with the Iranians".

Ms Foreman's son, Joe Bennett, said he was hopeful there had been a "shift" in the UK government's approach to his mother and stepfather's case following Mr Lammy's comments.

"The question that we wanted to ask as a family is, if this isn't the solution or a proposed solution, then why not?", he said.

"Anything can be done in theory, but it's been a long time coming where it gets the attention it warrants.

"And the conversation to be had, at least we can either get a proposed path to their release or closure that this isn't a solution."

Richard Ratcliffe, whose wife Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe was jailed in Iran for almost six years, said Mr Lammy's words were encouraging, and a prisoner swap should be on the table.

"It is welcome that David Lammy is making positive noises," he said.

"Of course, he is the secretary of state [for justice], so it is in his gift to review parole board decisions, it's in his gift to discuss with his colleagues and find a way."

He said that Jan's case had been raised as part of discussions to secure his wife's release so it was "not a surprise that he continues to be on the table".

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Sir Jeremy Hunt, who was the foreign secretary while Ms Zaghari-Ratcliffe was imprisoned in Iran, said the UK government should be doing "everything it possibly can" to free the Foremans but urged caution.

"Obviously, what you don't want to do is something that leads to the next person being illegally detained by the Iranians," he said.

"So you have to be careful that you don't reward the kind of absolutely despicable behaviour that we're seeing from Iran, one of the very few governments in the world that will arbitrarily detain an innocent person as a tool of diplomatic leverage."

The couple were travelling through Iran on a motorcycle trip around the world when they were detained by Iranian authorities on espionage charges.

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