Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what action, if any, they are taking in response to the decision by the government of Hong Kong to deny a work visa to the Financial Times’ Asia News Editor Victor Mallet; and whether they have made an assessment of the implications of that decision on (1) freedom of expression, and (2) the one country, two systems policy, in Hong Kong.

We remain very concerned by the Hong Kong authorities’ unprecedented rejection of a visa for senior British journalist Victor Mallet. In the absence of an explanation from the authorities we can only conclude that this move is politically motivated. We believe this undermines Hong Kong’s freedom of speech and freedom of the press, both guaranteed by the Joint Declaration, and the Basic Law, and increases the pressure on the ‘One Country, Two Systems’ framework. We urge the Hong Kong authorities to urgently reconsider this decision. Confidence in Hong Kong’s rights and freedoms is an essential component of its future success. We have raised this issue with the Hong Kong authorities.

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