National security law: Hong Kong, Beijing condemn British judicial body’s withdrawal of judges from city’s top court
- UK Supreme Court President Lord Robert Reed, Vice-President Lord Patrick Hodge resign from Hong Kong’s Court of Final Appeal with immediate effect
- British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss, Deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab express support for decision, criticise ‘erosion of liberty and democracy in Hong Kong’
Britain’s top judicial body has withdrawn its last two serving judges from Hong Kong’s highest court, citing concerns over national security legislation imposed by Beijing and ending a long-standing arrangement that stood as a strong endorsement of the city’s rule of law.
In a statement published on Wednesday, UK Supreme Court president Lord Robert Reed said he had submitted his resignation together with vice-president Lord Patrick Hodge to the Hong Kong government with immediate effect – a move that defenders of the city’s judicial independence condemned as politically rather than professionally driven.
The pair were previously among eight British judges serving in Hong Kong’s Court of Final Appeal. Six of the other appointees are retired and will not be affected by the withdrawal, with non-permanent judge Lord Jonathan Sumption having previously stated that he would stay on.
Four other judges from Australia and Canada also currently serve in the city’s top court.
Hong Kong government officials and top legal bodies have decried the British move as putting politics before the law, while also stressing the impact would be minimal.
“We have no choice but acquiesced in the two eminent judges’ decision to resign from the Court of Final Appeal following the UK government’s decision to discontinue an agreement that has been respected and has served both the Hong Kong and UK interests well for years,” Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor said.