Sir Keir Starmer has landed in China for a controversial three-day visit, which he has claimed will make the UK safer and richer – despite stark concerns over the threat the country poses to Britain’s national security.
The PM, who travelled to Beijing overnight on Tuesday with a delegation of more than 50 representatives of British businesses, sports and culture, has insisted that economic cooperation will not be traded for national security.
Sir Keir will attempt to improve the UK’s relationship with the economic powerhouse, which he said had “veered from the golden age to the ice age” in recent years.
But the PM is under pressure to raise several difficult subjects, including China’s espionage activity, when he meets with President Xi Jinping on Thursday.
It comes after the collapse of a trial of two men accused of spying for China earlier this year, and an accusation from MI5 in in November that Chinese spies had been posing as headhunters on LinkedIn to target MPs as part of a “widespread” operation to access information about the UK government.
Meanwhile, some parliamentarians had urged the PM to cancel his trip over human rights concerns, such as the imprisonment of Hong Kong pro-democracy activist and British national Jimmy Lai.
But speaking ahead of the trip, Sir Keir said: “For years, our approach to China has been dogged by inconsistency – blowing hot and cold, from Golden Age to Ice Age. But like it or not, China matters for the UK.
“As one of the world’s biggest economic players, a strategic and consistent relationship with them is firmly in our national interest. That does not mean turning a blind eye to the challenges they pose – but engaging even where we disagree.
“This is what our allies do, and what I will do: delivering for the public, putting more money in their pockets and keeping them safe through pragmatic, consistent cooperation abroad.”
Speaking to reporters on the plane, he added: “The evidence there are opportunities is the fact that we’ve got so many CEOs with us on this flight, that we’ve got 60 coming out to explore those opportunities.”
Sir Keir said that this “reflects back at home in terms of the benefit that it brings back to the United Kingdom”.
The controversial visit comes despite a warning from the parliamentary intelligence watchdog in December that the government had previously been “reluctant to prioritise security considerations” when it comes to China.
The Intelligence and Security Committee (ISC) – made up of senior MPs and peers – urged the government to stop “dragging its heels” over whether to add China to the enhanced tier of its threat regime.
Sir Keir’s visit is the first by a British prime minister since Theresa May’s trip in 2018, after which relations with Beijing cooled following a crackdown on pro-democracy activists in Hong Kong a year later, while Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei was banned from the UK’s 5G network over security concerns.
Since coming to power, Labour has pursued a thaw in relations with China, which remains the UK’s third-largest trading partner and a major part of global supply chains, with the prime minister saying the Conservatives’ approach to Beijing had been “dogged by inconsistency”.
The trip follows visits by several senior ministers, including the chancellor Rachel Reeves, and the approval of a new embassy in London last week.
On Tuesday night, Downing Street said Sir Keir will pledge to maintain “guardrails” on national security during the talks, adding “he will be clear that we will not trade economic co-operation for our national security”.
On areas of disagreement, Sir Keir will be “clear that we will always defend our national security and where viewpoints differ, frank and open dialogue is of vital importance”, Downing Street said.
Sir Keir’s official spokesperson said that “without meaningful dialogue, we make no progress at all”, adding: “Sticking our heads in the sand and refusing to engage would be a staggering dereliction of duty.
“It would make the British people less safe, cut us off from opportunities and weaken our ability to manage global challenges in areas like climate and health.”
The spokesperson pointed to the fact that French and German leaders had visited China multiple times since 2018, during which time no British prime minister had been, while US president Donald Trump was expected to travel there in April.
But there remains the risk that a closer relationship with China could anger Mr Trump, who threatened to impose 100 per cent tariffs on Canada citing a Canadian deal with Beijing.
Mr Trump had initially praised the deal, but reversed his position after Canadian prime minister Mark Carney gave a speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, in which he appeared to criticise US efforts to annex Greenland.
Speaking to Bloomberg before his trip, Sir Keir said he would not choose between the US and China.
He said: “I’m often invited to simply choose between countries. I don’t do that.”
Sir Keir will be accompanied by representatives of businesses including Jaguar Land Rover, Barclays and AstraZeneca, as well as cultural organisations such as the Science Museum and the National Theatre.
He will also be joined by the business secretary Peter Kyle and the City minister Lucy Rigby.