Jimmy Lai Conviction

Meg Hillier Excerpts
Monday 15th December 2025

(1 day, 21 hours ago)

Commons Chamber
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Yvette Cooper Portrait Yvette Cooper
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I have met Sebastien Lai previously, and I will certainly meet him again in order to talk to him about what more support we can provide.

Meg Hillier Portrait Dame Meg Hillier (Hackney South and Shoreditch) (Lab/Co-op)
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A constituent of mine suffered a terrible rape in Hong Kong which was not properly investigated. Her statement was made with the use of Google Translate, and no rape kit was taken. She then found herself being accused of something else as a result, and will have been in the system for two years in January. She trusted that the legal system in Hong Kong would support her, but in taking on the case of a black British woman, her lawyers have taken a risk. Does the Foreign Secretary have confidence in the legal system in Hong Kong, and is there anything that we can do to support my constituent?

Yvette Cooper Portrait Yvette Cooper
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I am very sorry to hear the circumstances of my hon. Friend’s constituent, and I am happy to discuss them further with my hon. Friend. As she will know, we have raised our concerns repeatedly, especially in relation to the national security law and the way in which that law does not respect the circumstances and the commitments that were agreed. It has been a crucial part of Hong Kong’s identity for so many years, and what was embodied in the declaration was that it was about respect for the rule of law.