Hongkongers left to build bridges for a new life in UK

When Jim Wong arrived in the UK from Hong Kong last summer, the streets were deserted and he could hardly speak any English. The 29-year-old spent his first month in London moving between empty hostels, having escaped Hong Kong after police issued an arrest warrant against him.

Fearing authorities might eavesdrop on his conversations, the democracy activist kept his move a secret from his family until he landed.

“Mum cried for 20 minutes [when I told her],” says Wong. “I still miss Hong Kong, but the police have a warrant on me for eight offences; I realise I can’t go back. It gives me energy to want to have a life here.”

After experiencing a lonely arrival in London, Wong decided to set up an organisation with Mumford & Sons’ guitarist Winston Marshall to help other Hongkongers integrate in Britain. The pair met through charity Hong Kong Watch and have become good friends, together launching their buddy-up system Hong Kong Link Up to connect new arrivals with Britons.

With 300,000 Hong Kong residents set to relocate to the UK under a visa route that opened for British National Overseas (BNO) passport holders last weekend, they have already had thousands of responses. Marshall, the 33-year-old son of hedge fund tycoon Sir Paul Marshall, believes it is everyone’s duty to help those arriving from Hong Kong feel welcome.

Relying on the public sector to integrate newcomers would take “f------ ages”, he says.

The exodus from Hong Kong is due to a controversial security law which Beijing imposed on the former British colony last June. The crackdown criminalises anti-government movements, inhibiting free speech and the right to protest with punishments that include up to life in prison.

Many leaving know they may never go back. “I started my emergency plan before the law was even entered,” says a Hong Kong resident who fled to the UK last year and goes by the nickname David.

“Hong Kong has been hurt by an iceberg, and it is sinking with five compartments flooded – democracy, freedom, rule of law, human rights and self-governing. The sixth will be the economy and the seventh will be the healthcare system. I took a lifeboat before it was too late. I arrived at Heathrow, and I was relieved. Some of my friends have been arrested.”

Around 5.4m Hong Kong residents are now eligible to come to the UK under the BNO visa scheme, an escape route offered by the Government after it said the introduction of the security law meant Beijing had broken a binding deal agreed in 1997 – when Hong Kong was handed back to China – to guarantee the city’s freedoms until 2047.

Under the law, residents can be punished for vaguely defined national security crimes. Since last summer, authorities have unseated opposition legislators, imprisoned activists and frozen bank accounts. Early last month, 53 activists, including US human rights lawyer John Clancey, were arrested by 1,000 police officers in early morning raids.

Young barristers careful to keep any plans of fleeing to themselves have been discussing how many of their peers are now exploring re-qualification in England and Wales, says Philip Dykes, who stood down as chairman of the Hong Kong Bar Association two weeks ago.

Dykes says it is not only barristers under 30 who are leaving, adding that some with decades of experience in Hong Kong are considering a new life.

“Before I left office, my bar council members had reported news of barristers departing for the UK when the BNO scheme started. They also reported that they knew friends who were middle-class professionals, like doctors and accountants, who were planning to leave.”

The visa scheme is set to be a huge boost for the UK, with the net benefit officially forecast to be between £2.4bn and £2.9bn within five years. If the Government has underestimated take-up, that figure could turn out to be much higher.

A survey conducted by Hongkongers in Britain in December found that as many as 93pc of BNO status holders in Hong Kong intended to emigrate to the UK within three years – higher and faster than the Home Office’s largest estimates.

“This is one of the largest immigration plans in recent UK history so it’s important that it goes well,” says Nathan Law, one of Hong Kong’s most prominent young democracy activists, who has applied for asylum in the UK.

“For now, we’re still in a pandemic, so there’s less social interaction. When things become more normal, integration could be a problem.”

Law, who escaped the deteriorating political environment last summer, and spent his 27th birthday on a night flight to London, thinks there should be hotlines available to support any UK newcomers who are struggling to adapt, and that organisations with Hong Kong expertise should collaborate with the Government on integration programmes.

After hearing about the UK’s plans to help Hongkongers emigrate last summer, Mumford & Sons’ Marshall says he got “stuck in an internet wormhole” and was surprised at how little information was available online to enable people to adapt to life here. He hopes Hong Kong Link Up, the buddy-up scheme he has created with Wong, will fill that gap.

Many share his concerns.

“The application process is running smoothly, but there is concern that the Government doesn’t appear to have a plan or resources for integration, so all the initiatives are being done by civil society,” says Benedict Rogers, the chief executive of Hong Kong Watch, which introduced Wong and Marshall to each other.

“It’s unclear who in government has responsibility for this. We’ve gone round in circles a bit. We were told Penny Mordaunt was the minister responsible; we sent a letter to her flagging that there needs to be some resources. But we then got word that she’s not the minister responsible. The presumption is that Hongkongers will settle down here and be fine, but it’s not the case for some.”

In the letter, signed by various organisations including Hong Kong Watch, Mordaunt is told that while offering a pathway to citizenship is a “courageous step to offer safe harbour in the city’s darkest hour” – and one that could greatly benefit the UK – “local authorities do not have specific policies, strategies or the creative bandwidth to welcome and integrate Hong Kong arrivals into their communities”.

It added: “The Government must learn the lessons from past failures and take pre-emptive action now. This should start with ministers urgently convening a cross-government working group to ensure the successful welcome and integration of large numbers of Hong Kong new arrivals”.

Sources said the ministry of housing, communities and local government has taken responsibility from the Home Office for settling those who have moved under the scheme, and has written to councils.

The UK’s visa scheme has further inflamed tensions between Britain and Beijing, which are continuing to escalate – Ofcom last week revoked the licence of the Chinese state broadcaster CGTN to air programmes here.

China has said it will no longer recognise BNO passports, and there are fears that some may struggle to get to the UK.

David, the Hong Kong resident who moved here last summer and is enjoying himself “despite the rain”, says he worries some will be deterred from coming.