Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg has summoned the Chinese ambassador over concerns about the handling of protests in Hong Kong.
Tens of thousands of activists have been demonstrating against China's decision to only allow vetted candidates to run for elections on the island in 2017.
At the weekend police fired tear gas to try to disperse the pro-democracy demonstrators, who have occupied the centre of Hong Kong for several days.
Mr Clegg will meet the ambassador later this week to make clear his "dismay and alarm" at how authorities have handled the demonstrations.
He said the population of the former British colony were "perfectly entitled" to expect "free, fair, open elections".
"It is essential that the people of Hong Kong have a genuine choice of chief executive in 2017, through universal suffrage," Mr Clegg said.
The protests are continuing in the centre of Hong Kong "To that end I have asked for an urgent meeting with the Chinese ambassador to reiterate our position and seek reassurances from the Chinese government."
The unrest began after it was ruled that in three years' time, Hong Kong residents must choose their leader, or chief executive, from candidates picked by Beijing who must declare their "love" for China and its Communist system.
The activists, who want the decision requiring a pro-Beijing panel to screen candidates to be reversed, have set a deadline of Wednesday for the government to respond to demands for reforms.
But the island's chief executive Leung Chun-Ying has called on protest leaders to "immediately" withdraw their followers from the streets.
In his first public comments since tear gas was fired on Sunday, he said: "Occupy Central founders had said repeatedly that if the movement is getting out of control, they would call for it to stop.
A slogan on a street reads 'No violence' "I'm now asking them to fulfil the promise they made to society, and stop this campaign immediately."
But Occupy, the main group behind the recent street protests which started on Friday, rejected Mr Leung's demands and renewed its calls for him to step down.
Some demonstrators have worn masks and resorted to umbrellas or plastic capes to protect themselves - prompting the phrase "umbrella revolution" to trend on social media.
However, in a shift of tactics, uniformed police looked on from behind barricades and have so far not intervened in the peaceful protest.
Sky's Asia Correspondent Mark Stone, at the scene, said the activists were "good natured but utterly driven".
Mr Clegg is "dismayed and alarmed" at how authorities handled the demos On Sunday night, riot officers fired 87 rounds of tear gas after being charged by "violent protesters", with police saying 41 people had been injured.
Prime Minister David Cameron has told Sky News that he is "deeply concerned" about the situation in the former British colony and hopes it can be resolved.
China, meanwhile, has warned the international community not to "interfere".
Under the agreement of the 1997 handover from Britain to China, Hong Kong was given an independent legal and political framework.
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