Britain must accept China remains a ‘challenger’ despite golden era in relations, say MPs
2 min read
Britain must accept the “hard limits” of cooperation with China even while relations between the two countries are at a mutually recognised peak, MPs have said.
The Foreign Affairs Committee said while China could be a “viable partner” for the UK on some issues, it should be seen as an “active challenger” while power rests in the hands of the Communist Party.
Theresa May’s government has echoed the "golden era" phrase embraced by then Chancellor George Osborne in 2015, when he declared that the UK would be China’s "best partner in the west".
But the group said the UK’s policy saw economic considerations prioritised while showing an “unwillingness” to accept the country is often at odds with the superpower on values and national security.
In a report they cite concerns over telecoms firm Huawei’s involvement in the UK’s 5G infrastructure, allegations of “attempted interference in the UK’s domestic affairs” and the “extremely concerning” situation regarding how the country treats minority communities in the Xinjiang province.
“If the Government had not already committed in rhetorical terms to a "golden era" in UK-Chinese relations, the Committee questions whether it would be appropriate to do so now,” the document states.
Tom Tugendhat, who chairs the committee, said MPs had “been trying to understand China's approach to international laws, norms, rules and institutions” and what it means for the UK.
“We must recognise that there are hard limits to what cooperation can achieve; that the values and interests of the Chinese Communist Party, and therefore the Chinese state, are often very different from those of the United Kingdom and that the divergence of values and interests fundamentally shapes China's worldview," he said.
“This doesn’t mean that the Government should seek confrontation with China - or abandon cooperation.”
“We do think that a constructive, pragmatic and often positive UK relationship with China is possible. Indeed, it’s essential. But achieving this will require strategy, rigour and unity in place of hope and muddling through.”
The committee directly called on ministers to respond to Chinese attempts to subvert international human rights and to support UN efforts to investigate the treatment of the Uighur-Muslim population in Xinjiang.
It also said the Government should be “cautious” about the involvement of the country's companies in any aspect of UK critical national infrastructure, including telecommunications, amid security concerns.
And it urged ministers to assess whether anyone connected to the Chinese government has “improperly interfered, or attempted to interfere, in the UK's political institutions and processes, the rule of law, UK media or UK academia, and set out what it is doing to counter such interference, or the prospect of it”.
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