United Kingdom

A Liberal Democrat MP barred from entering Hong Kong has told the BBC she believes it was to "shut me up and to silence me".

Wera Hobhouse flew to Hong Kong with her husband on Thursday to visit her son and newborn grandson. However she was detained at the airport, questioned and deported.

The MP for Bath, one of more than 40 parliamentarians of the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China (Ipac) which is critical of Beijing's record on human rights, said she was given no reason for being refused entry.

Downing Street said the trade minister, who is in Hong Kong to promote British exports, had relayed the government's "deep concern" about the incident to senior Chinese and Hong Kong figures.

A government spokesperson said Douglas Alexander had "demanded an explanation" to understand why Hobhouse was refused entry, when speaking with senior Chinese and Hong Kong interlocutors, including Hong Kong's chief secretary for administration.

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While her husband "got processed quite quickly" and was allowed entry, she was taken aside for questioning, held for five hours and then put on a return flight.

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Foreign Secretary David Lammy has promised to "urgently" raise the issue with authorities in Hong Kong and Beijing and "demand an explanation".

He added it would be "unacceptable for an MP to be denied entry for simply expressing their views as a parliamentarian".

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On Monday, Liberal Democrat foreign affairs spokesperson Calum Miller said "we've still had no answers from Beijing".

He urged the government to reject China's planning application for a new embassy in London. Housing Secretary Angela Rayner will decide whether to approve the plan, which has been opposed by the local council.

"China wants to take advantage of the UK's openness while refusing entry to British MPs and placing bounties on the heads of democracy campaigners living in the UK," Miller said.