Transnational Repression in the UK (JCHR Report)

Baroness Foster of Aghadrumsee Excerpts

Thursday 26th February 2026 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Foster of Aghadrumsee (Non-Afl)]

My Lords, I join others in congratulating the noble Lord, Lord Isaac, on his maiden speech. I think we all remember what a daunting prospect that was, so many congratulations to him. I also congratulate the noble Lord, Lord Alton of Liverpool, on securing this debate and introducing it, as he always does, with compelling evidence, incisive analysis, practical recommendations, and his typical passion and principle. I congratulate the JCHR, which the noble Lord chairs, on producing this powerful report on transnational repression in the United Kingdom, the subject we are talking about.

It is a very real threat. Hong Kong exiles who have quite rightly been welcomed into the United Kingdom now feel afraid that they are being watched by the Chinese Communist Party from which they fled. Several have received arrest warrants from the Hong Kong authorities, accompanied by bounties placed on their heads. Some, such as Carmen Lau, as reported in the media, have faced an appalling campaign of harassment, with anonymous letters sent to neighbours telling them to hand over Hong Kong activists to the Chinese embassy or report their whereabouts and activities to the Chinese embassy. In Carmen Lau’s case, it was even worse, involving sexually explicit images created by artificial intelligence, amounting to a campaign of sexual harassment. A young former Hong Kong district councillor who fled repression in Hong Kong in search of freedom in this country should not have to endure such obscene and grave abuse in the United Kingdom.

Of course, China is not the only perpetrator of transnational repression, though it is one of the most active and significant. Several Members of this House and the other place have been sanctioned by China and other regimes, and subject to various threats of harassment and espionage. Further, several British citizens, including the co-founder of Hong Kong Watch, Benedict Rogers, have faced sustained harassment as a result of their activism on human rights cases. In his case, for several years he received anonymous threatening letters at his home address. His neighbours in a London suburb received letters urging them to monitor him. Even his mother received letters, stamped and postmarked in Hong Kong, urging her to tell her son to shut up. He also received an official threat of a jail sentence from the Hong Kong Police Force if he did not cease his activism and advocacy for Hong Kong.

Transnational repression frequently targets dissidents living abroad, the family members of political prisoners and individuals who engage with the UN mechanism. Just last week, I was made aware of an example of a young Myanmar artist called Sai. He was trying to put on an exhibition in Bangkok of artists in exile from Hong Kong, Tibet, Iran, Russia and Syria, and Uyghur artists. The exhibition, which was scheduled to open for almost three months, was shut down by officials in Bangkok because of diplomatic pressure from the Chinese regime.

Finally, I want to talk about one of the most important aspects of the report: the foreign influence registration scheme, which was introduced under the National Security Act in 2023. The Joint Committee’s report welcomes the introduction of FIRS and the designation of Iran and Russia on the enhanced tier, and so do I. However, the report expresses concerns about the evidence it received regarding TNR by China, and therefore the absence of China from the enhanced tier. In concluding, can the Minister advise the House on whether TNR is a high priority consideration when deciding which countries should be specified under the enhanced tier of FIRS, and whether the Government will designate China on that enhanced tier in compliance with what the report has said?

Once again, I commend the noble Lord, his committee and this report, and look forward to hearing what the Minister has to say.