The UK government is planning to reintroduce extradition cooperation with Hong Kong on a โcase-by-case basisโ, triggering fears that activists seeking refuge in Britain could be sent back to the city.
The plan was revealed on Thursday by the UKโs Shadow National Security and Safeguarding Minister Alicia Kearns, who shared on X a letter from Security Minister Dan Jarvis to Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp, in which Jarvis communicated the planned changes to the Extradition Act 2003.
Jarvis said the amendments, which were introduced in the House of Commons on July 17, would remove Hong Kong from the Act, so that the UK government could work with the former British colony on a โcase-by-case ad hoc basisโ.
โThe safety and security of our citizens is our top priority,โ Jarvis wrote. โEnsuring that territories are correctly designated under the Act will ensure that the UK can accept extradition requests in a lawful and timely way to ensure the public is not put at risk.โ
The extradition arrangement between the UK and Hong Kong was suspended in 2020 after the Beijing-imposed national security law took effect in the city. It followed months-long protests in the city in 2019 against a planned extradition bill by the local government.
In his letter, Jarvis explained that as there was no international arrangement with Hong Kong allowing extradition, the UK could not validate an extradition request from the city, โeven if there were strong operational grounds to do soโ.