A Scottish missionary and his wife have been charged with sedition in The Gambia. The Foreign Office confirmed that two British nationals had been arrested but could not give more details.

A Scottish missionary and his wife have been charged with sedition in The Gambia.

David Fulton, from Troon, Ayrshire, and his wife Fiona, were backed by the Westhoughton Pentecostal Church in Bolton.

The pastor there, Martin Speed, said he heard that the couple were arrested on Saturday.

A Foreign Office spokesman said: "Two British nationals have been arrested in The Gambia and Foreign Office consular staff have been in touch with the couple and are providing consular assistance."

According to the Westhoughton Pentecostal Church website, Mr Fulton and his wife Fiona are in their eighth year in the Gambia and have two children.

It says Mr Fulton is chaplain for the Gambian army and has a ministry on the river, which involves reaching immigration outposts and villages only accessible by boat.

"This is a major challenge, as it involves a 10-day trip up river every month. But by God's grace he sees many won for the Lord from Islam and animism," the website states.

It says Mrs Fulton looks after terminally ill people and spends time visiting women in their homes and in hospital.

The Gambia, one of Africa's smallest countries, is predominantly Muslim but has a significant Christian community. Indigenous beliefs are also practised.

A report in the International Herald Tribune said the Fultons were paraded on state television on Wednesday and charged in court in the capital, Banjul, yesterday.

The prosecution reportedly accused the couple of writing letters to individuals and organisations to "bring into hatred or contempt, to excite disaffection against the President of the Republic and the government of The Gambia".

The newspaper said the couple pleaded not guilty and the case was adjourned until December 16. They were granted bail but authorities seized their travel documents and ordered them to report daily to police, it reported.

The Foreign Office spokesman later said consular staff had visited the couple in jail - where they were being held with their three-year-old daughter - on Tuesday and again yesterday.

"The couple themselves said the Gambian police had treated them very well indeed and have even gone out to purchase nappies and cleaning items for the child," the spokesman said.

He could not confirm whether they had since been bailed but he said that the couple had "proper legal representation".