A Thai appeals court has quashed criminal defamation charges against British labour rights activist, Andy Hall, who was sued by a fruit packaging company after alleged human rights violations at its factory.

Ahead of today’s successful appeal, Mr Hall, from Spalding in Lincolnshire, had been facing three years in jail and a £3,500 fine, after being convicted in September 2016. His sentence had been suspended for two years.

At time of his conviction, Mr Hall had spoken to the Telegraph about his "complete shock" and the chilling effect it could have on other human rights workers operating in Thailand.

His protracted legal battle began in 2013 after he did research for a report for Finnish consumer organisation Finnwatch that alleged abuses against Burmese workers at Natural Fruit’s pineapple canning operation. The workers claimed the company had broken labour regulations.

Sunya Joongdee, a lawyer working for Mr Hall, said that Thursday’s ruling had dismissed the criminal defamation case, which also resulted in the collapse of a computer crime case relating to information that had allegedly been uploaded online.

He said the court had accepted that Mr Hall’s interviews with migrant workers revealed information that should be made public.

The court’s decision can be further appealed at Thailand’s Supreme Court by Natural Fruit or Andy Hall.