Britain must abandon the fantasy of “quiet diplomacy” and lead a coordinated response. Beijing has made clear that it views British protests as cost-free and British citizens as expendable.
Ceding control is an unforced error in an age of geo-economic competition. A 99-year lease won’t stop Mauritius from signing a defence treaty with China or allowing the Chinese to monitor and disrupt UK-US operations in Diego Garcia.
The strong suspicion is Starmer bought his ticket to China by his government putting their thumb on the scales on a number of issues where the eventual outcome was of benefit to the Chinese. Moreover will any deal actually be worth what it promises?
She says the Prime Minister should not be “jetting off” to Beijing to secure trade deals when China is guilty of human rights breaches.
The risk for Britain is not just falling further in the global rankings, but settling into a new normal of diminished economic ambition and reduced prosperity for its people, something that seemed unthinkable just a generation ago.
Conservatives must be even bolder if we want to prevent an electoral wipeout, by further recognising and targeting the scale of the inefficiency problem.
From denying the genocide of Uyghurs, refusing to call the Chinese Communist Party a threat, putting the Chinese mega-embassy back on the planning agenda, to now embracing TikTok, a platform well known for its ties to Beijing. It is difficult not to feel unsettled.
Singapore lets you build momentum around that income, while the UK just exacerbates the expenses. If we returned, we’d pay a gruelling marginal rate of tax while footing the bill entirely for nursery and childcare costs. Treading water rather than making progress.
In Hong Kong, I once thought freedom meant the absence of control. In Britain, I’ve learned that freedom endures only when people respect limits. Or, in other words, the unspoken decency that makes this country feel like home.
The answer is not to scrap ILR or to stretch it indefinitely. The answer is to keep ILR at five years, as promised, but to tighten welfare eligibility. In short: Don’t Punish Everyone — Punish Abuse.
We may resent China’s methods, but it thinks seriously and strategically and can execute quickly. By contrast, Liz Truss’ attempts to reshape the UK were immediately cast as inherently destructive because they rattled short-term nerves.
Instead of drawing on our national story, we’re embarrassed by it and instead compress our identity into a narrative barely older than Singapore’s independence. We’re a much older country with a much shorter memory.
This deal risks assisting our adversaries in a well-established information war. China’s model of state capitalism is not confined to its borders. It exports influence, suppresses criticism, and seeks to rewrite the global narrative in its favour.
In each of ur new programmes, on the social contract, the State, and the economy Onward will maintain a relentless focus on getting out of the Westminster bubble and talking to the people across the UK whose opinions, views and experiences really matter.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer paid little more than lip service to the fate of Jimmy Lai during his visit to China this month.