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Hong Kong residents are likely to move to the UK faster than the British government intended, and more must be done to prepare for their arrival, a new advocacy group said.
HongKongers in Britain (HKB) surveyed city residents hoping to emigrate under a new British government scheme that opens in January, allowing those with colonial-era British National Overseas (BNO) status to obtain visas and pursue a “path to citizenship”.
The Home Office has already said that it expects nearly half a million people to accept the offer during its first three years, but HKB said the number could be more than 600,000.
Around three-quarters of those planning to move have university degrees and earn salaries well above the city average, so they will be well positioned to contribute to the British economy. But few have families in Britain and only half have friends here, so they may need help settling down and integrating. Three-quarters plan to travel with children, so schools must be prepared for an influx of students, the group said.
Four out of five of those surveyed want to come in the next two years, faster than the UK government anticipated.
“The speed in terms of how soon they want to get to the UK or leave Hong Kong [is] pretty amazing, ”said HKB’s Rikkie Yeung. “Many will come soon, very soon. The majority, 80%, planned to emigrate, to leave Hong Kong, within two years ”.
Britain’s plan for a path to citizenship was drawn up in response to a national security law passed by Beijing this summer, which has been used to crush dissent in Hong Kong in politics, academia and the media. communication.
The survey of those hoping to use it to emigrate was not a random sample of city residents, because migration to the UK is politically sensitive. China has condemned the policy and threatened to stop recognizing BNO passports and take other “countermeasures.”
Instead, HKB sought out survey participants on social media channels, where it has a large following. More than 300 people participated anonymously.
There have been predictions of a brain drain, as many in the city consider the UK visa offer or emigration to other countries, including Canada and Australia. Around 3 million people in Hong Kong, or almost half of the city’s population, are eligible for British national passports (abroad) and could travel with dependents.
Those who wanted to come to Britain overwhelmingly said their main motivation for uprooting their lives and moving to the other side of the world was political pressure.
“96 percent consider that Hong Kong is no longer a safe and free home they are used to living in after the passage of the national security law,” the HKB report said.
Almost everyone sees their change as a step toward citizenship, and 93% expect to apply when eligible after five years of residency.
A small proportion of those hoping to move have been arrested for their role in pro-democracy protests since 2019. Although criminal records are often an obstacle to visas, Hong Kong residents in Great Britain asked the authorities of the United Kingdom to use discretion in cases of applicants charged with political crimes. .
Several respondents said they were concerned about surveillance by Chinese security forces, including in the UK. The group called on British authorities to consider excluding from the visa program groups that could “harm national security”, such as Hong Kong police and officials.
He also called for an expansion to cover those who do not have BNO status but need a safe haven, including younger protesters born after the 1997 handover of British colonial rule, or whose parents do not have BNO status.
