China has lifted sanctions from six serving British MPs and peers, Starmer says

Keir Starmer at Yuyuan Gardens in Shanghai. He said Xi Jinping told him ‘all parliamentarians are welcome’ in China. Photograph: Carl Court/PA

China has lifted the sanctions it imposed on serving British MPs and peers in a significant sign of warming relations after Keir Starmer travelled to Beijing for landmark talks with Xi Jinping.

Nine UK citizens were banned from China in 2021, including five Conservative MPs and two members of the House of Lords, targeted for highlighting human rights violations against the Muslim Uyghur community.