A source close to the party leadership also offered reassurances there was no change to its “commitment to supporting the Hong Kong community”.
Earlier this week, the Conservatives put forward a plan to toughen the residency requirement for immigrants seeking citizenship in the United Kingdom.
Under the plan, part of Kemi Badenoch’s major policy announcement as Tory leader, the period before immigrants can apply for indefinite leave to remain should be extended from five to 10 years. Those who claim welfare benefits, access social housing or have criminal records would be barred from settling in Britain permanently.
A Hong Kong migrant who has been in the country for more than two years under the BN(O) visa scheme said: “The proposal has sparked significant concern and dissatisfaction among many.”
Britain rolled out the scheme a year after Beijing imposed the national security law on Hong Kong in June 2020 following the anti-government protests in 2019. Britain handed the city back to Chinese rule in 1997.
