What is the population of Hong Kong and why has Boris pledged citizenship to UK passport holders there?
Boris Johnson has promised to extend the right of Hong Kong residents with UK passports to live and work here, with the Prime Minister accusing China of ‘a clear and serious breach’ of a treaty with Britain.
Mr Johnson told MPs he would facilitate a new route for those with British national (overseas) status to live, work and apply for citizenship in the UK.
The PM’s statement was made on Wednesday in the wake of China passing a strict and contentious new law.
This has got many wondering about the population of Hong Kong and the reasons why the PM would take this stance against the new law.
What is the population of Hong Kong?
There are roughly 7.49 million people living in Hong Kong, 350,000 of which are thought to have UK passports and 2.5 million of which are thought to be eligible to apply.
As for the controversial new law, its goal is to curb subversive and allegedly terrorist activities in addition to foreign intervention in Hong Kong’s affairs.
Under this law, people who commit acts of vandalism against public transport or government facilities can now be prosecuted with subversion or terrorism and could be handed sentences as extreme as life behind bars.
Meanwhile, anyone taking part in activities seen as secessionist would also be in violation of this law.
The passing of the law comes after months of anti-government protests in Hong Kong as citizens fear the government in Beijing has been taking away the city’s democratic freedoms.
The law has resulted in China being accused of ignoring a deal between itself and the UK which was struck in 1984 when Hong Kong was still a British territory.
Said deal was that Great Britain would return control of Hong Kong to China in 1997, in return for guarantees that the now-former-British territory would be able to keep its democracy and its autonomy.
President Donald Trump has voiced his displeasure with the situation, saying said that the behaviour of the communist government meant Hong Kong would no longer enjoy the special treatment it receives from the US.
As journalist Jo Lee previously wrote for Metro.co.uk: ‘As our former coloniser, Britain needs to stand with Hong Kongers now more than ever as we continue to fight.’
She also said: ‘At the time of the 1997 handover, Britain and China agreed that Hong Kong’s political system and way of life would stay distinct from China for 50 years under the ‘one country, two systems’ principle, and established this in a Joint Declaration.
‘China now disputes this, and claims the UK has no sovereignty, and no power to rule Hong Kong after the handover, even though the agreement will have a practical effect until 2047. Hong Kong developed its own distinctive identity by fusing Chinese and British culture, but it is also the defiance in our blood and the desire to fight for freedom and democracy that make us unique.
‘It is exactly because Hong Kong has its own set of laws that we are able to protest on the streets and to speak our minds freely.’
MORE: Protesters arrested in Hong Kong as China’s harsh new security law comes into force
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