British authorities said any decision to deny entry to an MP who was “simply expressing their views” was “unacceptable”.
“It is deeply concerning that a UK MP was refused permission to enter Hong Kong last week,” a British government spokesman said.
Wera Hobhouse, the MP for Bath and a member of the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China, which has been critical of Beijing’s handling of human rights issues, earlier said she was detained and questioned upon her arrival in Hong Kong before being sent back to the UK without an explanation last Thursday.
The spokesman added: “Unjustified restrictions on the freedom of movement for UK citizens into Hong Kong only serves to further undermine Hong Kong’s international reputation and the important people-people connections between the UK and Hong Kong.”
Britain’s trade minister, Douglas Alexander, met Hong Kong Chief Secretary Eric Chan Kwok-ki on Monday as part of his visit to the city and mainland China.
