After years of tension with the previous Conservative government over human rights and security issues, Reeves has the political space to take a more businesslike approach to Beijing and attempt to leverage China’s vast market for economic gain.
“Everything the Tories have done on foreign policy has been about backbench management,” said a British government official who, like others in this article, was granted anonymity. “We are now the G7 country with the worst relationship with China.”
Reeves’ mission has become more urgent as Britain’s economy continues to falter, with borrowing costs reaching 1998 levels this week and the value of the pound plunging, threatening the government’s promises to generate growth and make Britons wealthier. That sparked some discontent back home, as opposition parties called on Reeves to cancel the trip entirely.
But with Donald Trump’s return to the White House imminent, his intense dislike of China posing the greatest risk, Britain is keen to avoid upsetting its single largest trading partner.
With Trump’s right-hand man and tech billionaire Elon Musk seemingly charting the daily course of British politics through posts on his social media platform .
“China is a growing and important partner, but the United States is much more important. Now we have someone in the White House who is incredibly hostile to China,” said one bank lobbyist.
