Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

Her Majesty's Government whether the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs has instructed Her Majesty's Ambassador to the People's Republic of China to seek an urgent meeting with that state's Foreign Ministry to discuss recent remarks about the status of the Sino-British Joint Declaration.

The Minister of State for Asia and the Pacific held a meeting with the Chinese Ambassador on 5 July in which he made clear that the UK Government did not accept the position of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson that the Joint Declaration was an historical document of no practical significance. He stressed that, as a guarantor of the Joint Declaration, the UK Government regarded it as legitimate to continue to issue a six-monthly report to the House on Hong Kong affairs.

The Deputy Head of Mission at the British Embassy in Beijing also raised the Government's concerns with the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs on 5 July stressing that the Joint Declaration is a legally binding treaty, registered with the UN. As a co-signatory, the UK Government is committed to monitoring its implementation closely.