British Nationals Abroad: Repatriation

(asked on 30th January 2020) - View Source

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with his Chinese counterpart on allowing non-spouse family members of UK citizens, that are Chinese citizens to be repatriated to the UK from China.


Answered by
Heather Wheeler Portrait
Heather Wheeler
This question was answered on 4th February 2020

The Foreign Secretary has spoken directly to his Chinese counterpart about the evacuation of British nationals from Hubei Province, and he raised the issue of dual-nationals and dependents, emphasising the importance of keeping families together. Contact with the Chinese authorities continued at Senior Official level. The Chinese Government did make a last-minute decision to allow dual nationals and dependents to board the UK flight which arrived at RAF Brize Norton on 31 January. At 1945 on 2 February, we successfully evacuated a further 11 people – 7 British nationals and 4 dependents. These figures were correct as of 4 February. We remain in close contact with the Chinese authorities and are working with international partners to provide other ways for British nationals who remain in Hubei to return home.

Reticulating Splines