Matthew has written to the new Foreign Secretary, Boris Johnson, to raise his concerns over the treatment of Falun Gong prisoners in China.

Falun Gong is a spiritual and peaceful exercise and meditation regime predominantly practised in China. It was first introduced to the public in the early 1990s and by the end of the decade it is estimated that over 70 million Chinese citizens were practising it on a weekly basis. Since then, it has come under increasingly fierce government crackdown in China due to the large scale of its appeal, which has resulted in many of its practitioners being imprisoned.  

Matthew met with some of his constituents in Parliament Square who were there to draw attention to their own concerns about worrying reports of organ harvesting as well as poor treatment of political prisoners in China.

Matthew said: “My constituents are rightly distressed over the reported treatment of Falun Gong detainees and are extremely worried about the news of forced organ harvesting.

"I have written to the Foreign Secretary to urge that the United Kingdom highlights its concerns over these disturbing reports on the international stage and presses for the promotion of human rights across China”.