The UK government is to promote a Chinese surveillance company that has been blacklisted by the US after it was “implicated” in human rights violations of the country’s Uighur Muslim minority.

The Home Office has agreed to allow Hikvision, a surveillance equipment provider active in China’s western Xinjiang province, to attend the Security and Policing trade fair it is hosting in Farnborough in March.

A Conservative backbencher called on government departments to rethink the invitation, which comes a few months after the Trump administration accused Hikvision of helping with “high-technology surveillance against Uighurs”.

Hikvision was one of nine companies due to attend the event that had been accused of threatening human rights, according to an analysis of the 300 companies listed to attend, conducted by the internet research company Top10VPN and shared with the Guardian.

The Tory MP Bob Seely said he hoped the Home Office would reconsider the invitation. “We need to stop having an ethical bypass when it comes to China and hi-tech. If we are going to proclaim UK values and standards, we need at least the appearance of consistency.”

Last week, the Guardian reported that the British government was to host NSO Group at the trade event. The Israeli firm’s hacking technology is alleged to have been used to target journalists, academics and human rights campaigners. NSO has denied the allegations and said its technology is used by its clients to pursue crime and terrorism. Read more

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