Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the implications for human rights in Hong Kong of the proposed new Chinese extradition law that would allow criminal suspects in Hong Kong to be sent for trial in mainland China.

In a statement to the House on 13 June, I set out in detail our assessment of the implications for human rights of the proposed changes to its extradition legislation and the recent protests in Hong Kong. This included our belief that, if enacted, the proposals could pose a risk to the rights and freedoms and high degree of autonomy guaranteed by the Sino-British Joint Declaration.

We welcome the Chief Executive's statement on 18 June that she would not proceed with the second reading of the Bill if the fears and anxieties of the people of Hong Kong were not addressed.