The operations of Hong Kong’s Economic and Trade Office (HKETO) in London will remain unaffected by a UK spying verdict, observers have said, arguing that the British government is unlikely to seek the body’s closure so as to maintain relations with Beijing.

A British court on Thursday found Bill Yuen Chung-biu, the London HKETO’s manager, and Peter Wai Chi-leung, a retired Hong Kong police superintendent, guilty of spying on activists from Hong Kong on behalf of Chinese authorities.

The Hong Kong government has said the allegations were “absolutely unrelated” to both the administration and its London office, while Beijing’s embassy in the UK dismissed the case as a “political move”.

Lau Siu-kai, a consultant to the semi-official Chinese Association of Hong Kong and Macau Studies think tank, said on Friday that the case would not hamper the HKETO’s future in the UK as British authorities currently preferred better ties with the Chinese government given the current political climate.

“As this case remains in the legal arena rather than the political one, the impact will be minimal; the British government also currently wants to improve relations with China and the Hong Kong government,” he said.

He also said the British government’s follow-up action on the case depended on how Downing Street responded to its politicians who were critical of China.