UK – The Guardian, Jan. 28, 2026
PM may also discuss fate of Uyghurs with Chinese leader on trip aimed at improving economic relations
Keir Starmer has said he will “raise the issues that need to be raised” on human rights with China’s president, Xi Jinping, as he arrived in Beijing for the first trip to the country by a UK leader in eight years.
The prime minister has come under pressure from rights groups to try to secure the release of Jimmy Lai, the jailed former media tycoon and one of Hong Kong’s most significant pro-democracy voices.
Lai, a British citizen, faces spending the rest of his life in prison after he was found guilty by a Hong Kong court of national security offences in a case that the UK sees as politically motivated.
Starmer told reporters on the flight to China: “In the past on all the trips I’ve done, I’ve always raised issues that need to be raised. But part of the reason for engaging with China is so that issues where we disagree can be discussed.”
