Britain’s BN(O) visa scheme for Hongkongers unlikely to change under Labour, analysts say

Rise of anti-immigration Reform UK party could increase resistance to BN(O) policy in the long run, experts say

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Labour leader Keir Starmer and his wife Victoria arrive at 10 Downing Street following the party’s landslide victory. Photo: Phil Noble

Published: 12:05am, 6 Jul 2024Updated: 12:54am, 6 Jul 2024

Labour’s landslide victory in Britain’s general election is unlikely to affect a bespoke migration pathway for Hongkongers put in place by the previous government, analysts have said, but the rise of the anti-immigration Reform UK party could increase resistance to the policy in the long run.

Thursday’s poll was one for the history books, with a record number of ministers defeated and the Conservative Party, in power for 14 years, recording its worst-ever loss in terms of seats.

It was also the first general election in which more than 140,000 Hongkongers who have settled in the United Kingdom under the British National (Overseas) visa scheme could cast their vote.

The British government launched the BN(O) pathway in January 2021 in response to the Beijing-imposed national security law the year before.

Among the first-time voters was 38-year-old Sue Wong*, who left Hong Kong in late 2021 and started a new life in Bishop’s Stortford, a town about 35km (22 miles) northeast of central London, with her husband and two children.

“We can’t really predict how the new government’s policies will affect us or in what ways, but we are glad that we are able to cast a vote on who will lead the country,” she said.