Contributions
834 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDHong KongI thank my right hon. Friend for his continued efforts on this issue, and for working positively with the Government. We will continue to consider designations under the sanctions…12 Nov 2020HANSARDHong KongI thank the hon. Gentleman for his considered question. He is absolutely right to raise the issue of academic interference. UK universities are international at their core, and we…12 Nov 2020HANSARDHong KongAs I have said in previous responses, it is not appropriate to speculate on sanctions or individuals. The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office will consider any evidence…12 Nov 2020HANSARDHong KongI can confirm that the Chinese ambassador has been summoned to the Foreign Office this morning. Freedom of religion or belief is a key issue for this Government. My hon. Friend…12 Nov 2020HANSARDHong KongAs I have laid out in previous answers, we are working with international partners and have summoned the Chinese ambassador. We have done an immense amount of work at the United…12 Nov 2020HANSARDHong KongWe have a duty to uphold our promise to the people of Hong Kong to protect their rights and autonomy. I am pleased that my hon. Friend realises that the offer that we are making…12 Nov 2020HANSARDHong KongWe have made our position very clear on the national security law—the second occasion that we called out a breach of the joint declaration. That certainly should not be the case,…12 Nov 2020HANSARDHong KongThat is the one of the cleverest ways I have seen of segueing from an urgent question on the actions in Hong Kong to a question about Scottish independence—the hon. Member should…12 Nov 2020HANSARDHong KongI thank my hon. Friend for her question, and for her continued interest in China and her work at the FCO previous to her work in this place. The simple answer is that we cannot…12 Nov 2020HANSARDHong KongThe hon. Lady is right to raise this issue. We are deeply concerned about the extrajudicial detention of over 1 million Uyghur Muslims and other minorities in so-called political…12 Nov 2020HANSARDHong KongI thank my hon. Friend for his question and for all his work as the Prime Minister’s special envoy on freedom of religion and belief. We are aware of the designations by the US,…12 Nov 2020HANSARDHong KongMy right hon. Friend is very highly skilled in this area, having served in a similar role to me at the FCO, and he is absolutely right. Hongkongers are highly skilled and highly…12 Nov 2020HANSARDHong KongI congratulate the right hon. Gentleman, my former ministerial colleague, on his question and also on the interest that he takes in this particular issue, but he will have to…12 Nov 2020HANSARDHong KongWe will always stand by Hong Kong. That is why we have taken the actions that we have. We believe that there have been three breaches of the joint declaration. Our offer to BNOs…12 Nov 2020HANSARDHong KongIt is absolutely the case that all countries, China included, must comply with their international obligations. Freedom of religion and belief is incredibly important, and this UK…12 Nov 2020HANSARDHong KongMy hon. Friend is absolutely right to raise this. We have already seen statements from four of our partners earlier today. I understand there may very well be a statement from the…12 Nov 2020HANSARDHong KongThe hon. Gentleman is right to raise his question. I do not necessarily agree with his last point. On the one country, two systems point that he raises, these actions by China…12 Nov 2020HANSARDHong KongMy hon. Friend is absolutely right. Again, I would like to thank him for his continued work on this issue. We have played a leading role in the international community in holding…12 Nov 2020HANSARDHong KongWhat I can tell my hon. Friend is that we work very closely with our international partners, and to have 39 countries sign up to our statement at the UN on this single issue was…12 Nov 2020HANSARDHong KongI have got an awful lot of time for the hon. Gentleman, but to accuse this Government of sitting idly by on this issue, frankly, is nonsense. We have led the international…12 Nov 2020