LONDON/HONG KONG (PA Media/dpa): The United Kingdom has made visas available to thousands more people from Hong Kong after pro-democracy campaigner Jimmy Lai was sentenced to 20 years in prison.
The 78-year-old British national was jailed on Monday under a security law imposed by China.
The move has been strongly condemned by the government, with Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper calling on Hong Kong's authorities to end Lai's "appalling ordeal."
Adult children of British national status holders who were under 18 at the time of Hong Kong's 1997 handover to China will now be eligible to apply for the route independently of their parents, the Home Office said.
Their partners and children will also be able to move to the UK under the expanded route.
Ministers estimate 26,000 people will arrive in the UK because of the change over the next five years.
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said the government will always honour its historic commitment to the people of Hong Kong.
Lai, who founded the now-defunct Apple Daily newspaper which criticized the governments in Hong Kong and Beijing, was arrested in August 2020.
Eighteen years of his sentence for conspiring with others to collude with foreign forces to endanger national security and conspiracy to publish seditious articles will run consecutively with a term of five years and nine months for fraud.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer raised Lai's case with Chinese leader Xi Jinping in his visit last month, saying they had a "respectful discussion" on the issue.
Almost 170,000 Hongkongers have already moved to the UK under a special visa scheme launched in early 2021 following the imposition of Beijing's national security law.
Mahmood said: "This country will always honour its historic commitment to the people of Hong Kong."
"We are proud to have already provided a safe haven to almost 170,000 Hongkongers since 2021. In the face of the continued deterioration of rights and freedoms, we are now expanding eligibility so more families can build new lives here."
"While we must restore order and control to our borders, the British people will always welcome those in genuine need of sanctuary."
Cooper said: "Though Hong Kong's rights and freedoms continue to erode, this government's support for its people remains steadfast, and that's why we are ensuring that young people who missed out on resettlement protection because of their age will now be covered." - dpa
