Speaking about the events in Hong Kong, a Foreign Office spokesperson said:

The British government is concerned about the situation in Hong Kong and is monitoring events carefully.

It is Britain’s longstanding position, as a co-signatory of the Sino-British Joint Declaration, that Hong Kong’s prosperity and security are underpinned by its fundamental rights and freedoms, including the right to demonstrate. It is important for Hong Kong to preserve these rights and for Hong Kong people to exercise them within the law.

These freedoms are best guaranteed by the transition to universal suffrage. We hope that the upcoming consultation period will produce arrangements which allow a meaningful advance for democracy in Hong Kong, and we encourage all parties to engage constructively in discussion to that end.

Further information

Follow the Foreign Office on twitter @foreignoffice

Follow the Foreign Office on facebook and Google+