Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the circumstances surrounding the arrest of more than one hundred political activists and human rights lawyers in China on 11 July.

We pay close attention to the human rights situation in China, and are concerned by reports of the detention of a number of human rights lawyers since 9 July 2015. We believe that rule of law, good governance and a transparent legal system are vital underpinnings for stability and will continue to engage China on these issues.

We support the EU statement of 15 July, which said the detentions raised serious questions about China's commitment to strengthening the rule of law and called for the release of all those detained for seeking to protect rights provided by the Chinese Constitution.

We have raised our concerns about the ongoing restrictions on civil society activity in China, including with the Chinese authorities during the UK-China Human Rights Dialogue in April this year.