UK should engage more with China, says minister

LONDON — Britain “needs more engagement with China,” the country’s new trade chief argued Monday.

Speaking to POLITICO on the sidelines of the recently-elected U.K. Labour government’s International Investment Summit, Trade Secretary Reynolds said Britain’s level of engagement with Beijing over the last few years had been an “an absolute outlier” compared to other G7 countries.

And he slammed the previous U.K. government for “how little we have done” to build a relationship with Beijing. “The relationship we have as a country to China is different to, for instance, the U.S. or other European countries,” Reynolds argued.

His comments come ahead of U.K. Foreign Secretary David Lammy’s trip to Beijing this week and as the government seeks to re-establish links with the country. Chancellor Rachel Reeves is also reported to be planning a visit to China early next year, after she discussed restarting a key U.K.-China economic dialogue with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng last month.

Britain has had a fraught relationship with Beijing in recent years. Former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, who faced pressure from China hawks in his Conservative Party to call out Beijing on a host of human rights and security issues, described China as the biggest challenge to the world order. That’s a far cry from the so-called “golden era” in ties heralded by the U.K. government a decade ago.

Reynolds comments also come amid a fraught debate about Chinese automotive tariffs. Reynolds said British car manufacturers haven’t yet raised formal concerns about unfair competition from China, unlike their U.S. and EU counterparts.

Echoing previous comments by Industry Minister Sarah Jones, Reynolds stressed that that the U.K. auto sector is “different” from that in other European countries because “it’s very heavily focused on export, with 80 percent of the vehicles we make in the U.K. exported.”

“Our primary concern on this is in making sure we still have those thriving and open export markets,” Reynolds said – while adding that he is keeping the situation “under close analysis.”

Trade agenda

Reynolds also provided updates on a raft of other ongoing trade negotiations. He confirmed that the U.K. is preparing for a “forthcoming new round of talks with the Gulf Cooperation Council very soon, maybe seeing them next week.” Reynolds visited Saudi Arabia to relaunch negotiations on a U.K. trade deal with six Gulf states last month.

A trade deal with India is also a priority, Reynolds said. “I think there are clear economic and commercial reasons why we should pursue those,” he said.