Keir Starmer has travelled to China with a vow to bring “stability and clarity” to the UK’s approach to Beijing after years of what he described as “inconsistency” under the Tories, but a series of issues may get in the way of his efforts to improve relations with the economic powerhouse.
Human rights
One of the thorniest issues on the agenda is the case of Jimmy Lai, the jailed former media tycoon and one of Hong Kong’s most famous pro-democracy voices.
Lai is a British citizen and was found guilty by a Hong Kong court of national security offences last month that the UK sees as politically motivated. Yvette Cooper, the foreign secretary, has called for his immediate release and summoned the Chinese ambassador after his conviction.
Lai faces spending the rest of his life in prison, amid increasing fears about his physical condition. Starmer is under pressure to do what he can to secure his release. He may also raise the fate of the Uyghurs, a persecuted Muslim minority in China who have been co-opted into forced labour programmes.
The UK has a long tradition of defending human rights and as a former human rights lawyer, Starmer is likely to bear this responsibility heavily.
Taiwan
President Xi could raise Taiwan, the self-governing island that Beijing claims as its territory, although it is an issue China wants the west to stay out of.
Unification is one of Xi’s main priorities and he has not ruled out the use of force to achieve it. Under his rule, aggression towards Taiwan has increased, with intense military intimidation and non-military attacks and harassment designed to convince or coerce Taipei to give up the territory.
US intelligence believes Xi has ordered the military to be ready to win a fight for it by 2027, making this a crucial year.
The UK does not recognise Taiwan as a state and has no diplomatic relations with it. China threatened to cancel high-level trade talks with the UK last year over a government minister’s visit to the territory, but they ultimately did go ahead after diplomats privately scrambled to contain the fallout with Beijing. Starmer is likely to tread carefully.
Embassies
The UK government finally gave the green light to China to build a controversial new mega-embassy near the Tower of London last week, years after it was first approved by Boris Johnson in his time as foreign secretary.
Beijing has made the embassy a priority in the UK-China relationship. Xi raised the matter directly with the prime minister in their first phone call in August 2024, so the decision came at a helpful time for Starmer.
MPs from across the political spectrum had voiced their opposition to the application, warning of the risks of espionage from the huge site, which sits close to data cables that run into the City of London. But it was signed off after spy chiefs reassured ministers that the risks could be managed.
It could be years before the development is actually built, however, as local residents plan a legal challenge. Government insiders hope the decision will give them some leverage over a reciprocal decision for the UK’s crumbling embassy in Beijing, which had been blocked because of the row.
National security
There is deep concern in the UK, from across the political spectrum, over China’s attempts to spy on politicians and infiltrate critical infrastructure.
Last November MI5 issued an espionage alert after an attempt to recruit parliamentarians through two LinkedIn profiles linked to the Chinese intelligence service.
China has sanctioned several MPs and peers. While in 2014, the UK imposed sanctions on groups alleged to have targeted politicians, journalists and critics of Beijing in an extensive cyber espionage campaign.
Beijing has also been accused of harassing Hong Kong pro-democracy activists in the UK and suppressing criticism by an academic at a British university. And that’s all before China’s attempts to infiltrate British critical infrastructure. Downing Street has insisted Starmer is “clear-eyed” about the national security threat China poses at home – and abroad – and will not flinch from raising difficult issues.
This could include pressing Xi on Russia’s war in Ukraine. China has always insisted it is neutral in the conflict but has quietly supplied Moscow with finance, components and crucial diplomatic cover. The prime minister could ask the Chinese president to use his leverage with Vladimir Putin to stop the fighting.
Economic ties
The central purpose of Starmer’s trip – and the reason he is taking a 50-strong business and cultural delegation with him.
As important as any deals which are actually signed, however, is the symbolism of the first British prime minister in eight years visiting China – and what that says about the UK’s focus on growth and prosperity.
The PM will also want to secure ongoing investment in key national infrastructure such as steel. But in the grand scheme of Beijing’s international relationships, the UK is a relatively small player. Even though China, the world’s second biggest economy, is the UK’s third biggest trading partner, Britain is not even in Beijing’s top ten, with the Chinese apparently more interested in the EU bloc.
Starmer will be keen to give Xi the big sales pitch. However, China will regard closer political ties with the UK as a big win, especially as it advances its own global ambitions as the US recedes from its role as the most significant and stable ally to most western nations.
Trump reaction
Donald Trump is an unpredictable ally, and his views on China are known to be particularly trenchant. So much so that after Mark Carney visited Beijing, the US president threatened to impose a 100% tariff on goods imported from Canada if the US’s northern neighbour did any trade deal with Beijing.
The Canadian PM quickly clarified his country had no intention of pursuing a free trade deal. But Trump’s threat was a warning shot to other western nations keen to deepen their own economic ties with China, which Downing Street will have noticed.
The government has highlighted Starmer’s good relationship with Trump, and pointed out that the president is planning to travel to Beijing himself in April. Starmer will also be under pressure to get assurances from China on its intentions towards the Chagos islands after Trump spectacularly U-turned on his support for the deal.
