Campaigners say they are 'extremely disappointed' after Nottingham City Council confirmed it would not be ending its relationship with a major Chinese city. Nottingham has had an official relationship with the Chinese city of Ningbo since 2004, when the University of Nottingham opened a 14-acre campus there.
But following the passing of a controversial national security law in Hong Kong three years ago, giving Beijing more powers in the country than ever before, some have been calling for Nottingham's relationship with China to be reviewed.
Nottingham City Council has now responded to a petition calling for the end of its relationship with Ningbo, which was handed in on June 12 last year. The petition, launched by the Nottingham Stands with Hong Kong (NSWHK) group, received more than 1,500 signatures.
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But confirming it has rejected the petition, a Nottingham City Council spokesperson said: "Nottingham's twinning arrangement with Ningbo has been reviewed by the city council. We are satisfied that retaining the relationship between Nottingham and Ningbo is important for both our cities. We have also responded in full to the petition organisers."
Kate Wong, from the NSWHK group, said: "We had some idea that the council would not be ending its relationship, but we are extremely disappointed by this decision. The council is prioritising economic factors here over human rights concerns and that should not be the case."
In its full response to the group's petition, Nottingham City Council said: "We share your concerns about human rights and we have used our partnership with Ningbo as a platform to formally write to the Chinese government...As an active partner we would be doing a disservice to our relationship and failing in our democratic duty if we did not make it clear that we are concerned by China's record in this area."
But Kate Wong added: "We would welcome any evidence that the council has used this platform to raise concerns, because we haven't seen any. After the council elections, we will be calling for another review into this that is much more transparent.
"For the review that has just happened, we have no idea who was consulted and what criteria was used, so we will be looking to put motions forward again at full council meetings for a public review." Nottingham's other visible links with Ningbo include the Ningbo Friendship Bridge, which was officially named as such in 2016.
The decision comes despite many UK towns and cities having ended their relationships with China, including Newport, Wakefield, Newcastle and Bath. A statement from NSWHK added: "Amid Russia's invasion, the council presented a clear stance to cut ties with its sister cities in Russia and Belarus.
"Keeping ties with Ningbo is undoubtedly a questionable gesture of endorsing the Chinese Communist Party, jeopardising democratic and human rights values. The twinning agreement with China is renewed every five years and the public has never been consulted since its establishment in 2004."
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