Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the effect of the national security law on the people of Hong Kong.

As the Foreign Secretary made clear in Parliament on 1 July, the enactment and imposition by China of national security legislation for Hong Kong constitutes a clear and serious breach of the Sino-British Joint Declaration. The legislation violates the high degree of autonomy of executive and legislative powers and independent judicial authority, provided for in the Joint Declaration. Furthermore, it contains a slew of measures that directly threaten the freedoms and rights protected by the Joint Declaration. Since the legislation was introduced, the Hong Kong authorities have arrested a number of political figures in Hong Kong.

The Foreign Secretary set out our concerns about the national security legislation to State Councillor/Minister for Foreign Affairs, Wang Yi, on 8 June and 28 July. FCDO officials also continue to raise our concerns with the Hong Kong authorities, including with members of the Executive Council and the President of the Legislative Council.

On 9 August, the Foreign Secretary issued a statement together with the Foreign Ministers of Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the United States, which expressed shared concern at Beijing's imposition of national security legislation. We will continue to bring together our international partners to stand up for the people of Hong Kong, to call out the violation of their freedoms, and to hold China to their international obligations freely assumed under international law.