“NO child should have to go this long without their mother” - was the heartfelt plea by South West Surrey MP and Foreign Secretary, Jeremy Hunt, after visiting the daughter of jailed mum Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe in Iran on Monday.

Mr Hunt made his emotional appeal as he departed the Middle East country after apparently having a request to meet the 39-year-old charity worker from Hampstead - and wife of Farnham man Richard Ratcliffe - turned down by Iranian authorities.

He did, however, get to meet Nazanin and Richard’s four-year- old daughter Gabriella - a British citizen who has been separated from her parents and forced to live with her grandparents in Tehran ever since Nazanin was arrested in April 2016 as she and her then-baby daughter were about to board a flight back to the UK after visiting family. Mr Hunt also met Nazanin’s parents and brother.

Speaking after the visit, Richard welcomed Mr Hunt’s plea, which adds to a marked escalation in tone from the UK Government since the Farnham MP took over as Foreign Secretary from Boris Johnson in July - with the notable recent example of Mr Hunt’s attendance at a special performance of play ‘Nazanin’s Story’ in London last month.

Richard told the Evening Standard: “Mr Hunt bought presents for Gabriella and a little stuffed elephant, and his daughter who is also four made her a postcard with stickers on. Gabriella had drawn him a picture too. Nazanin had made two dolls, one for Gabriella and one for his daughter.

“She wanted to thank him for coming to Iran and for the effort he is putting in. I think Nazanin’s family were moved that he came and is paying such close attention to this.

“Personally, I was really pleased how clear and straightforward he was with his comments.

“Given the swirling vulnerabilities with Iranian and British politics, being clear and consistent on where the UK stands is important. If you say it’s not acceptable [to have jailed Nazanin], then everybody can understand each other.”

Mr Hunt’s visit was the first by a western foreign minister to Iran since the US withdrew from the Iran nuclear deal and renewed oil sanctions in May.

While in the country, the Foreign Secretary held talks with Iran’s Foreign Minister Javad Zarif and other senior figures on the future of the nuclear deal, Iran’s role in the conflicts in Syria and Yemen, and the ongoing cases of detained British-Iranian dual nationals - of which Nazanin, a project manager with the Thomson Reuters Foundation, is sadly one of many.

Speaking ahead of the visit, Mr Hunt said: “More than anything, we must see those innocent British-Iranian dual nationals imprisoned in Iran returned to their families in Britain.

“I have just heard too many heartbreaking stories from families who have been forced to endure a terrible separation. So I arrive in Iran with a clear message for the country’s leaders: putting innocent people in prison cannot and must not be used as a tool of diplomatic leverage.”

There were hopes that Mr Hunt would also be allowed to meet officials from Iran’s judiciary and Revolutionary Guard, who have the most control over Nazanin’s case, but this is not thought to have gone ahead. Nazanin is currently serving a five-year jail sentence in Iran after she was found guilty of spying - allegations she denies.