Hong Kong National Security Legislation: UK Response

Debate between Claudia Webbe and Dominic Raab

Tuesday 2nd June 2020 Commons Chamber

[Dominic Raab]

I thank my hon. Friend, and welcome his remarks and comments. He is absolutely right about the violation of the joint declaration, whether that is through the infringements of peaceful protests or the legislation regarding the national anthem. He specifically asked about Australia. As he will have seen from the statement that the UK has put out, we work closely with the Australians on this matter, as we do with all our Five Eyes partners: the Canadians, the Americans and the Kiwis as well. I spoke to Marise Payne yesterday evening about this subject, and we will be working even more intensely in the future.

Of course, even to get to this point—the work that we have done and the commitment that we have made—we have been talking to the Australians and our other international partners for months, and that will continue constructively. I know that the Australians feel very much that this situation is in their neighbourhood and backyard, and are taking a very principled point of view, but they are right up against it; they see all the impacts of what China is doing, even closer than we do, and we will be working hand in glove with them.

[Claudia Webbe (Leicester East) (Lab)]

Amnesty International found that the Hong Kong police force has indiscriminately arrested over 1,300 people in the past year at peaceful protests, and has tortured those in detention. It has used extreme force against pro-democracy protesters, including the use of tear gas, pepper spray and rubber bullets. In America, we see a brutal state crackdown against protests in response to the latest police killing of an unarmed black man, and in England and Wales there have been over 1,700 deaths following contact with the police since 1990. What are the Government doing to oppose state-sanctioned violence and racism in Hong Kong and across the world?

[Dominic Raab]

We stand up in the United Nations, the Council of Europe and all the other international forums, as we are doing regarding Hong Kong, and call out those flagrant violations of international law. I have set out the approach that we are taking in relation to Hong Kong. We have raised the matter in the UN Security Council, of which China is obviously a permanent member. China is extremely influential. It deploys all its economic and political leverage—and, indeed, intimidation—to get others to stay quiet. What the United Kingdom has shown—and I am grateful for the hon. Lady’s support—is that we are standing up as a matter of principle and saying, “This is unacceptable”, and we are taking the actions that I described.

Covid-19

Debate between Claudia Webbe and Dominic Raab

Tuesday 17th March 2020 Commons Chamber

[Dominic Raab]

Of course time is critical. We are in daily touch with all the relevant interlocutors, including the airlines and airports, but it is important that we take this measure now, not least given some of the comments that have been made in the House about travel arrangements over the Easter period.

[Claudia Webbe (Leicester East) (Lab)]

Like many of my constituents, I have a family member stuck abroad—in my case, an older aunt stuck in the US. I certainly look forward to her healthy return, along with that of the rest of my constituents’ family members, once a global strategy is in place. My right hon. Friend the Member for Islington South and Finsbury (Emily Thornberry) was right to highlight the global leadership and global response that is required. In that regard, is not one of the lessons we must learn from covid-19 the need for a joint mechanism to guide co-ordinated global efforts on the development, testing and roll-out of potential cures and vaccines, potentially with the establishment of a dedicated body responsible for that work? Will the Foreign Secretary undertake to look into that proposal?

[Dominic Raab]

I thank the hon. Lady for the emphasis she puts on international co-ordination. There are multilateral efforts to make sure we deal with everything from research and development of vaccines to capacity building for the most vulnerable countries. I am certainly happy to look at the details of any proposals if she wants to write to me. The challenge has been with different approaches, driven partly by different assessments of the risk, but also the pace at which coronavirus has spread and geography.