London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Saturday, Aug 30, 2025

By allowing expulsion of opposition Hong Kong legislators, China broke treaty with UK – London

By allowing expulsion of opposition Hong Kong legislators, China broke treaty with UK – London

UK Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab has accused China of violating a bilateral treaty on Hong Kong after it allowed the unseating of city lawmakers. The British government is now considering sanctions.
Beijing’s authorization of the expulsion of elected legislators from Hong Kong’s parliament constitutes “a clear breach” of the 1984 joint UK-China declaration, Raab said.

According to the document, Hong Kong would maintain a “high degree” of autonomy in its domestic affairs. This was a key condition under which the UK returned the city, its colony at the time, to China in 1997.

“The UK will stand up for the people of Hong Kong, and call out violations of their rights and freedoms. With our international partners, we will hold China to the obligations it freely assumed under international law,” Raab said.

The UK’s Foreign Office stated that China previously violated the same pact in 2016 and last year when it passed a law that was aimed at maintaining security in Hong Kong and criticized by local activists.

It added that the actions against the legislators were “part of a pattern apparently designed to harass and stifle all voices critical of China's policies.”

Minister of State for Asia Nigel Adams said that the government will consider targeting Chinese officials under a “Magnitsky-style sanctions regime,” referring to a US law which allows for blacklisting foreigners accused of human rights violations.

On Wednesday, China’s top legislature in Beijing passed a resolution that gave Hong Kong's government power to immediately expel individual members of the city's Legislative Council accused of promoting independence from China and inviting foreign meddling.

Four opposition MPs were ousted the same day. Fifteen remaining opposition lawmakers jointly resigned in protest, arguing that the dismissal of their colleagues was undemocratic and had violated local laws. The head of the city's government, Carrie Lam, meanwhile, insisted that the move was legal and necessary.

Beijing has long been accusing foreign countries of stoking protests and inciting riots in Hong Kong. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin told reporters that giving the city government powers to unseat MPs it deemed disloyal was necessary to uphold the rule of law and maintain security.

On Thursday, China’s agency responsible for Hong Kong affairs blasted the mass resignation of opposition MPs as a “farce” which highlighted how some lawmakers “disregard citizens for their own political interests.”

“It shows their stubbornly confrontational attitude against the central government,” the statement read.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Corporate America Cuts Middle Management as Bosses Take On Triple the Workload
Parents Sue OpenAI After Teen’s Death, Alleging ChatGPT Encouraged Suicide
Amazon Faces Lawsuit Over 'Buy' Label on Digital Streaming Content
Federal Reserve Independence Questioned Amid Trump’s Push to Reshape Central Bank
British Politics Faces Tumultuous Autumn After Summer of Rebellions and Rising Farage Momentum
US Appeals Court Rules Against Most Trump-Era Tariffs
UK Sought Broad Access to Apple Users’ Data, Court Filing Reveals
UK Bank Shares Dive Over Potential Tax on Sector
Germany’s Auto Industry Sheds 51,500 Jobs in First Half of 2025 Amid Deepening Crisis
Bruce Willis Relocated Due to Advanced Dementia
French and Korean Nuclear Majors Clash As EU Launches Foreign Subsidy Probe
EU Stands Firm on Digital Rules as Trump Warns of Retaliation
Getting Ready for the 3rd Time in Its History, Germany Approves Voluntary Military Service for Teenagers
Argentine President Javier Milei Evacuated After Stones Thrown During Campaign Event
Denmark Confronts U.S. Diplomat Over Covert Trump-Linked Influence in Greenland
Starmer Should Back Away from ECHR, Says Jack Straw
Trump Demands RICO Charges Against George Soros and Son for Funding Violent Protests
Taylor Swift Announces Engagement to NFL Star Travis Kelce
France May Need IMF Bailout, Warns Finance Minister
Chinese AI Chipmaker Cambricon Posts Record Profit as Beijing Pushes Pivot from Nvidia
After the Shock of Defeat, Iranians Yearn for Change
Ukraine Finally Allows Young Men Aged Eighteen to Twenty-Two to Leave the Country
The Porn Remains, Privacy Disappears: How Britain Broke the Internet in Ten Days
YouTube Altered Content by Artificial Intelligence – Without Permission
Welcome to The Definition of Insanity: Germany Edition
Just a reminder, this is Michael Jackson's daughter, Paris.
Spotify’s Strange Move: The Feature Nobody Asked For – Returns
Manhunt in Australia: Armed Anti-Government Suspect Kills Police Officers Sent to Arrest Him
China Launches World’s Most Powerful Neutrino Detector
How Beijing-Linked Networks Shape Elections in New York City
Ukrainian Refugee Iryna Zarutska Fled War To US, Stabbed To Death
Elon Musk Sues Apple and OpenAI Over Alleged App Store Monopoly
2 Australian Police Shot Dead In Encounter In Rural Victoria State
Vietnam Evacuates Hundreds of Thousands as Typhoon Kajiki Strikes; China’s Sanya Shuts Down
UK Government Delays Decision on China’s Proposed London Embassy Amid Concerns Over Redacted Plans
A 150-Year Tradition to Be Abolished? Uproar Over the Popular Central Park Attraction
A new faith called Robotheism claims artificial intelligence isn’t just smart but actually God itself
Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner Purchases Third Property Amid Housing Tax Reforms Debate
HSBC Switzerland Ends Relationships with Over 1,000 Clients from Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Qatar, and Egypt
Sharia Law Made Legally Binding in Austria Despite Warnings Over 'Incompatible' Values
Italian Facebook Group Sharing Intimate Images Without Consent Shut Down Amid Police Investigation
Dutch Foreign Minister Resigns Amid Deadlock Over Israel Sanctions
Trump and Allies Send Messages of Support to Ukraine on Independence Day Amid Ongoing Conflict
China Reels as Telegram Chat Group Shares Hidden-Camera Footage of Women and Children
Sam Nicoresti becomes first transgender comedian to win Edinburgh Comedy Award
Builders uncover historic human remains in Lancashire house renovation
Australia Wants to Tax Your Empty Bedrooms
MotoGP Cameraman Narrowly Avoids Pedro Acosta Crash at Hungarian Grand Prix
FBI Investigates John Bolton Over Classified Documents in High-Profile Raids
Report reveals OpenAI pitched national ChatGPT Plus subscription to UK ministers
×