Experts say business with China is always a double-edged sword let alone when its overheated economy can offer only marginal gains
Starmer vows to remain ‘clear-eyed’ over national security as he flies to China
Keir Starmer’s trip to China is billed as an attempt to revitalise diplomatic relations but eight years after Theresa May paved the way for a never-materialised “ambitious” post-Brexit deal, the prospect of the prime minister landing any meaningful trade deal is slim, experts have warned.
The visit to Beijing, involving a delegation of British companies led by Starmer, the chancellor, Rachel Reeves, and the business secretary, Peter Kyle, is the first since May’s 2018 visit, and will revolve around joint trade and investment efforts.
Downing Street is already treading a sensitive diplomatic path, suggesting that while issues such as human rights breaches, national security or the imprisonment in Hong Kong of the 78-year-old British pro-democracy campaigner Jimmy Lai will be raised, the main focus will be on the business and economic links between China and the UK.
