THE Government has been urged to do more to bring home six British soldiers who are currently in jail in India - two of whom are from Yorkshire.

Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson told Parliament today the UK would "leave no stone unturned", in efforts to bring the men - referred to as the "Chennai Six" - home.

Paul Towers, from Pocklington, Nicholas Simpson, from Catterick, Billy Irving, from Connel, Argyll and Bute, Nick Dunn, from Ashington, Northumberland, Ray Tindall from Chester, and John Armstrong, from Wigton, Cumbria, were working for an American maritime company AdvanFort, providing anti-piracy protection when they were arrested in October 2013 on illegal weapon charges.

The charges were dropped months later, but an appeal by Indian authorities saw the men convicted and sentenced to five years in jail.

Prime Minister Theresa May raised their plight with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the G20 summit, and Boris Johnson was yesterday urged by former Foreign Office Minister Sir Huge Swire to help bring them home.

Speaking in the Commons on Wednesday, Sir Hugo told Mr Johnson: "Whilst I welcome the fact the Prime Minister raised the issue of the Chennai Six with Mr Modi at the G20, can I urge you to focus your efforts on the chief minister of Tamil Nadu and to seek a meeting with her urgently.

"It's almost four years since our boys have been languishing in jail there, I visited them myself.

"But it's time, frankly, that they were brought home."

Mr Johnson said: "You are absolutely right. You suggest an interesting avenue for further work. I will certainly look at the possibility of talking to the chief minister of Tamil Nadu.

"Whether we will be any more successful with her in making our points, I will ascertain, but we will leave no stone unturned."

Mr Johnson said he had already previously raised the case with his Indian counterparts on several occasions, but was told "they cannot interfere in their own courts system, any more than we can interfere in our own courts system".