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DERMOT MURNAGHAN: Following the massacre of 92 people in the Syrian town of Houla, the Foreign Secretary William Hague has called for action from the UN Security Council but what can be done without the support of the Russians and the Chinese there. Let’s go to Bedfordshire now and join the Foreign Office Minister, Alistair Burt, good morning to you Mr Burt. That UN ceasefire, which was always far from perfect, now seems to be totally unravelling. What routes are there now at the United Nations?

ALISTAIR BURT: Good morning. Well Kofi Annan has got to come to the United Nations Security Council next week and give a report on the ceasefire and what he has been attempting to do but plainly, the events of yesterday throw into very sharp relief what’s happening on the ground and the frustrations of the Security Council and those that have backed the plan. Yesterday’s events were appalling, the evidence would appear to point to the hands of the Syrian regime for the massacre of men, women and children and we believe that there should be an urgent meeting of the Security Council and they will have to have all the options on the table that they need in order to show that the international community cannot be thwarted.

DM: Is it worth Britain trying to put bilateral pressure on the likes of the Russians before the Security Council meets?

AB: Well one of the weaknesses of the past year has been the fact that the international community has not acted together at the Security Council. We’ve certainly not been the back marker, we have been urging condemnatory statements and urging the Security Council to act collectively from the very start. It’s important that the Russians and the Chinese both back Kofi Annan’s plan, accordingly if it is seen to be thwarted by the Syrian regime then we believe it is equally important that the Security Council act collectively in response to that. William Hague is going to Moscow on Monday, he will be speaking to Foreign Minister Lavrov there and I would imagine that this issue and how the international community deals with what appears to be calculated attempts to thwart the determination to stop the violence and help the people of Syria, there will be concern about how that challenge is to be met.

DM: Well push towards that, if the UN route fails as it has in the past at the Security Council, what’s the plan B?

AB: Well, that is what all the allies are talking about at present, to decide what should be done. I should say at this stage again it remains very important to recognise just how complex and difficult this situation is and despite how appalling the events were of yesterday, there is the fear that things could get worse. Sectarian violence is now starting to appear, there is a danger of a spread to Lebanon and into surrounding areas. Awful though it might be, things could get worse. Accordingly, the international community has got to work in a way which will not make things worse but make the Syrian regime realise they are responsible for the violence and the only reasonable way out appears to be Kofi Annan’s plan and political transition that is part of the ceasefire and the ending of violence. We should all stay behind that but I know that everybody will be thinking, well what comes next if the Syrian regime is determined to thwart it?

DM: Of course the British government is in a privileged position in terms of adding to the international condemnation of Syria by holding the Olympics here in a couple of months’ time and elements of the Syrian regime making much of the fact that they want to come here. Is Britain going to ban those members of the Syrian regime who want to come here who perhaps have blood on their hands? Are we going to make it clear we don’t want them in this country and we’re not going to let them in?

AB: Well the process is this, we all want to see athletes compete and recognise that those who spent the last few years of their lives preparing for this moment deserve proper consideration but we’re not blind to the fact that a number of Olympic committees have close connections to government. Senior military figures attempting to come to the United Kingdom will have to pass a test that their presence here is conducive to the public good. Now it’s not for me as a Foreign Office Minister to say whether they will pass that Home Office test but one would imagine that senior military figures connected to the regime are not going to find it easy to persuade the British government that their presence here would be conducive to the public good.

DM: A lot of people would go beyond that now given that massacre and many, many that have gone before then and just say look, we don’t really want the Syrian team in this country lock, stock and barrel, okay maybe punishing the athletes but they are representatives of that regime and if they win a medal, if they win a gold, we don’t want to hear their national anthem played on British soil.

AB: I think we do have to recognise this is the Olympics. The Olympic committee have their own rules for this and there is a distinction between athletes and others. As I’ve said, we’re very conscious of the position of representatives, we know how closely connected they can be with regimes, that’s why it still remains the opportunity for a home nation to refuse entry. I’ve been as clear as I can to indicate that we can distinguish between those who wish to come to the United Kingdom but I think we must wait and see what applications come forward but it’s clear that certain figures shouldn’t really be contemplating a visit to the United Kingdom in these circumstances.

DM: Okay Mr Burt, thank you very much, Alistair Burt Foreign Office Minister there.