Labour accused of paving way for China to extradite political opponents from UK amid £100k bounty scandal
Bounties of £100,000 are being offered to those who deliver Hong Kong pro-democracy campaigners to the Chinese Embassy in London.
3
And Tories say proposed tweaks to the 2003 Extradition Act could see Chinese dissidents legally hauled back into the grip of the regime.
Alicia Kearns, Shadow Minister for Home Affairs, who raised the alarm, said in a letter: 'Why has the Government introduced cooperation with Hong Kong, and by extension, the Chinese Communist Party authorities?
'Has freedom and the rule of law been returned to Hong Kong - or have you decided these issues are no longer saleable alongside the 'reset' in relations between the UK and China?
'You will be aware of the repression faced by Hong Kong democracy activists living in the UK, including the recent campaign of bounties.
'What guarantees can you give that no Hong Konger, CCP critic or anyone targeted by the CCP will be extradited under the new arrangement?
'We would be grateful for some clarity on why extraditions are being relaunched.'
Iain Duncan Smith said: 'This would be an absolutely dreadful kowtow to the Chinese.
'I don't know how much more this government can do to show what an absolutely pathetic supplicant it has become.
'They do not seem to understand that China is the single biggest threat to freedom in the world today.
'They are, yet again, bending the knee to a regime hell bent on destroying democracy.'
Labour's Security Minister Dan Jarvis denied the move.
China beams LASER at German military plane 'endangering personnel' on mission in WW3 flashpoint Red Sea
3
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
STV News
an hour ago
- STV News
'Ring of steel' wind farm halted as court backs campaigners
Campaigners fighting plans for a wind farm in Sutherland have won a legal victory after Scotland's highest civil court quashed government approval for the project. The Court of Session in Edinburgh ruled that ministers had failed to give adequate reasons for approving the Strath Oykel wind farm near Rosehall. If built, the 220m turbines would contribute to what opponents describe as a 'ring of steel' around the village, potentially leaving residents surrounded by as many as 171 turbines. Tisi Dutton, campaigner from No Ring of Steel (NOROS) said locals were 'encouraged' by the news. STV News Locals have protested the wind farm plan which would see village 'encircled by turbines' She told STV News: 'I believe the legal process is being followed as it should be. It's now up to ministers to reconsider the application. 'The encirclement of the strath is at the forefront of NOROS' thinking. We will request that ministers follow the refusal, as has been recommended by the two reporters. 'We're not against windfarms per se, but you've got to have the right development in the right place.' The proposal, submitted by German developer Energiekontor in 2022, faced more than 150 objections and was unanimously rejected by Highland Council. After the Scottish Government asked the local authority to reconsider, councillors stood by their decision. A public inquiry then took place in October 2024. Reporters working on behalf of the government recommended that the plans be refused. But the government gave the development the green light, prompting Highland Council to launch a legal challenge. Judges have now ruled that ministers failed to provide adequate reasons for overturning the inquiry's recommendation. Ministers had argued the development will 'provide a contribution to renewable energy targets and carbon savings' and 'will provide economic benefits which also weigh in its favour.' But campaigners say the environmental cost to Strath Oykel and its endangered wildlife was too high. STV News No Ring Of Steel campaigner Tisi Dutton Strath Oykel is popular for its green landscapes, varied wildlife and busy salmon fisheries. Turbines are already prominent in the skyline at Rosehall, which campaigners say is putting local wildlife at risk such as bats, water voles and protected bird species, such as white-tailed eagles. The original inquiry examined concerns about the cumulative impact of the towers and fears about potential pollution of pristine waters inhabited by critically endangered pearl mussels. Tisi said: 'It's endangerment of the significant area of conservation which is the River Oykel and it's there to protect critically endangered freshwater pearl mussels and endangered Atlantic salmon. 'Freshwater pearl mussels are very susceptible to any pollution and any kind of mitigation has been found to be usually and most likely to be unsatisfactory in protecting these creatures.' She added: 'We're, in a way, guardians of this strath – of its biodiversity – but also of its community because if you destroy the river you destroy employment. 'If you destroy the beauty of the place you destroy tourism, and the river and tourism are two key areas of employment here. 'It's heartbreaking and it's constant, but Noros wil keep going within the planning framework. It's immensely important that we keep fighting against the developments that threaten this strath.' Scottish Government ministers now have four options under consideration: they may invite further public comment on the planning application; issue a revised approval; uphold the recommended refusal put forward by two independent public inquiry reporters; or initiate a new public inquiry under the oversight of a different reporter. German wind farm developer Energiekontor declined to comment. Get all the latest news from around the country Follow STV News Scan the QR code on your mobile device for all the latest news from around the country
Spectator
2 hours ago
- Spectator
Jess Phillips: ‘I'm being controlled by aggression and violence'
Jess Phillips begins her interview with Iain Dale at the Edinburgh Fringe with a meandering homage to her hometown, Birmingham, which is still in mourning for Ozzy Osborne. 'Birmingham is like a village. I can link anyone in my family to someone in your family in three steps. Barbara Cartland is from Birmingham. Lawn tennis was invented on the Cartland estate. I grew up around Ozzy Osbourne's first son, Louis. I count them as good friends. My son went to the funeral procession. And Sharon is a lovely, lovely woman.' Phillips makes a promise to her host. She offers to recruit Sharon as part of his All Talk line-up at next year's festival. 'We could do a double header,' she says. Phillips seems to prefer the company of her family and her old social circle to her political allies. After entering parliament, she told her best friend, Amy, that she'd appeared on Question Time. 'Did you win?' said Amy who assumed that Question Time was Mastermind. Phillips jokes about her popularity. 'In Birmingham, I am quite beloved. I'm like Birmingham royalty. But it's a very low bar, isn't it?' Then they get down to politics. Dale asks about Phillips's resignation from the shadow front bench in November 2023 over a motion tabled by the SNP calling for a ceasefire in Gaza. She couldn't support the motion without returning to the back benches which she found agonising. 'I had to stake my life's work on it.' But she faced loud calls from her constituents to support the ceasefire. 'The clamour got considerably strong. And the pressure.' Dale asked her to specify. 'Pressure? What do you mean?' She chooses her words carefully and doesn't mention that her constituency is 45 per cent Muslim (according to the 2021 census.) 'I've always known it mattered greatly to my constituents. Some are of Kashmiri heritage. And there are Irish communities and I'm Irish myself. And both communities understand the idea of annexation. They understand that lines drawn on a map can lead to violence. … The pressure was in no way aggressive,' she adds, 'in no way aggressive.' A moment later, she qualifies this and admits to 'a smattering of aggression.' She explains that passions are likely to run high when controversial issues are aired. She praises the Labour whips who helped her to manage her departure. 'I didn't peacock about it.' And she was rewarded with a return to the front bench when Labour won power last July. Keir Starmer expressed his support for her in public. 'He made a bee-line towards me across a very busy room and gave me a cuddle.' She needed that cuddle. The battle for her seat in 2024 was mired in controversy. 'I've never known a breakdown of democracy like it.' She says that her opponent, 'the independent candidate,' brought in external canvassers. 'From London,' she believes. 'We couldn't advertise where we were going. They were haranguing voters. There were fireworks thrown, tyres slashed and constituents threatened at polling stations. And I have to say they were almost exclusively men.' She told her sons, aged 16 and 20, to keep away from the count. 'I thought, I'm being controlled by aggression and violence.' She won by 693 votes but her opponent asked for a recount. The returning officer refused. 'She was incredibly professional,' says Phillips. 'And absolutely tiny. About five-foot nothing. And she was encircled by men, shouting at her. It made me fucking furious.' After the count, Phillips exchanged a handshake with each of her defeated opponents. 'The independent candidate refused to shake my hand. Petty little idiot.' Jonathan Ashworth had a similar experience in Leicester South where he narrowly lost to the independent, Shockat Adam. Phillips now regrets her decision not to publicise her opponent's tactics for fear of tarnishing the image of her constituency. 'Lots of journalists came and I kept them away. I didn't want the people who live there to look bad.' Dale moves to lighter matters and asks about her experience with civil servants. 'You have to be careful what you say [inside the department.] If you say 'tag all men' someone will draft a paper about it.' On her first day, she was asked if she preferred the stairs or the lift. She chose the stairs and a note was duly entered in an official file. 'Minister likes to use the stairs.' Now she can't enter the building without being ushered away from the lift and towards the stairs. 'But I don't like to use the stairs!' Dale suggests that she might be offered a job at the foreign office. 'I don't think so. And diplomacy needs to change,' she says. 'It should be more about doing down the pub together.' He asks her if she's met Nigel Farage. She hasn't but she praises the Reform member, Nora Kamberi, who stood against her last year. 'Lovely woman.' Encouraged by Dale, she goes off on a tangent about Boris Johnson. 'He's nothing like he is on TV. Nothing like that. He's nervous and awkward, like a shy boy. He wasn't unpleasant or anything but he was like a kid. Kicking his feet.' Phillips briefly stood for the Labour leadership in 2020. Does she still dream of forming her own administration? 'It's a hard job, being prime minister. I wouldn't boss it. I absolutely wouldn't boss it. I think I'd be a basket-case after about 15 minutes. And I'd drink a lot. But it would be entertaining.' Dale asks her to name her favourite Tory MP. 'Simon Hoare,' she says, 'and Priti Patel.' The second name elicits a gasp of horror from the Edinburgh crowd. Phillips explains that Patel was deeply affected by the assassination of David Amess who represented an Essex constituency close to her own. After Amess's death, Patel telephoned Phillips every Sunday evening 'to see if I was all right.' Patel was home secretary at the time. This gesture meant a lot to a safeguarding minister who believes her job should not exist. 'I hate that there's someone with the words 'violence against women and girls' in their title.' Dale ends with the 'Angela Rayner question.' It's a challenge rather than a query. Earlier in the day, Dale tried it with Rachel Reeves by innocently asking her to name the most outstanding member of the Labour cabinet. Reeves stayed loyal to Starmer and nominated the colourless environment secretary, Simon Reed. Dale frames the question differently and asks Phillips if Labour has a successor to Barbara Castle. Phillips spots the trap and steps over it deftly. 'We've had numerous successors,' she says. 'Margaret Beckett, Margaret Hodge, Harriet Harman and Yvette Cooper.'
The Independent
2 hours ago
- The Independent
Reeves acknowledges voter disappointment amid fresh call for wealth tax
Chancellor Rachel Reeves says that Labour must deliver change to earn victory in the next election, acknowledging that some voters are disappointed with the party's progress. She said she is also 'impatient for change' but stressed that ministers cannot implement everything at once, highlighting her responsibility for financial prudence. These remarks coincide with growing public concern over Sir Keir Starmer 's government, whose approval rating recently reached an all-time low. Ms Reeves defended the government's tax policy, saying it has found the right balance despite the challenge of addressing public finance deficits. The discussion follows former Labour shadow chancellor Anneliese Dodds' call for a wealth tax, as recent polling indicates a significant perception of chaos within Sir Keir's administration.
