MP refused entry to Hong Kong to visit newborn grandson

A Liberal Democrat MP has been denied entry to Hong Kong where she was due to visit her newborn grandson.

Wera Hobhouse landed at Hong Kong airport on Thursday after a 13-hour flight - only to be detained by security, questioned, and put on a return flight to the UK, she told The Sunday Times. She had been due to visit her three-month-old grandson and described Chinese authorities' actions as a "cruel and upsetting blow".

Politics latest: Follow live updates "My son was waiting at the other end at arrivals. I couldn't even see him and give him a hug and I hadn't seen him in a year," she told the newspaper.

Ms Hobhouse is a member of the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China (Ipac) and has spoken out against Beijing's alleged human rights violations in both Hong Kong and Tibet. China has previously banned other Ipac members, including Sir Iain Duncan Smith and Nusrat Ghani, as well as former security minister Tom Tugendhat.

Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey has called on the foreign secretary to summon the Chinese ambassador in the wake of the decision, which he described as "heartless" and "totally unacceptable". In a letter to David Lammy, he asked the minister to uncover "why a British MP and her family have been treated in such an appalling way".

"We are sure you will agree that this is a deeply concerning situation," Sir Ed said. "The UK cannot allow the Chinese government to attempt to undermine our democracy by intimidating our parliamentarians." Read more from Sky NewsWho are the Labour MPs rejected from Israel?Emergency bill to protect British SteelPalestinian activist can be deported Mr Lammy previously described Ms Hobhouse's experience as "deeply concerning" and said he would "urgently raise" the issues with authorities in both Hong Kong and Beijing to "demand an explanation".

"It is deeply concerning to hear that an MP on a personal trip has been refused entry to Hong Kong," he said. "As I made clear earlier this week, it would be unacceptable for an MP to be denied entry for simply expressing their views as a Parliamentarian." It comes after two Labour MPs were denied entry to Israel last week.

Yuan Yang and Abtisam Mohamed were suspected of planning to "document the activities of security forces and spread anti-Israeli hatred.