Desperate son of Hong Kong s jailed Jimmy Lai asks to meet UK PM

LONDON – The son of jailed Hong Kong media mogul Jimmy Lai has called for an urgent meeting with Britain’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer, saying he was “desperate” as his father’s defence drew to a close in a high-profile trial.

Mr Sebastien Lai said a fresh diplomatic push was now needed to free the 77-year-old pro-democracy activist, who holds British citizenship and has been kept behind bars in Hong Kong since December 2020.

Lai’s lawyers have complained about his conditions in detention and say they are increasingly worried about his health.

“I don’t want my father to die in jail,” Mr Lai told AFP in London.

“I need to meet with the prime minister imminently.”

This week, Lai concluded more than 50 days of courtroom testimony as he fights charges of foreign collusion under Hong Kong’s national security law. The law was imposed by China to quell dissent after pro-democracy protests in 2019.

Lai is the founder of the now-shuttered Chinese-language tabloid Apple Daily, which supported the protests, and he is one of the most prominent figures to be prosecuted under the law.

The collusion offence carries a maximum penalty of life in prison, while he also faces a charge related to “seditious publications”.

“It is desperate now,” Mr Lai told journalists at a briefing in London organised by the Reporters Without Borders (RSF) rights group. “I really don’t know how long my father has.”

UN rights experts have called for Lai’s release, as have Western governments, including Britain.

A ‘pivotal moment’

In 2024, Mr Starmer raised Lai’s case with Chinese President Xi Jinping and has said securing his freedom was a “priority” for the government.

But in London, Lai’s legal team said more urgency was needed.

Lawyer Caoilfhionn Gallagher said delays in proceedings coupled with Lai’s age, health and