'Open dialogue with China offers hope in Jimmy case'

AN “open dialogue” with China will hopefully lead to the release of Jimmy Lai, a 78-year-old British citizen detained by Beijing, a senior minister has suggested.

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Communities Secretary Steve Reed made the claim when he was asked what had been achieved in the case of the Hong Kong pro-democracy activist during Sir Keir Starmer’s visit to China.

The Prime Minister raised Mr Lai’s case directly with Chinese President Xi Jinping when they met in Beijing this week. Mr Lai is the founder of now-defunct Hong Kong newspaper Apple Daily and has been an influential figure in the territory's pro-democracy movement.