Chinese embassy in London spits fire over British Steel saga

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Observing China is the essential newsletter to understand the UK-PRC relationship, explained in the context of global developments.

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The last seven days has seen a flurry of activity in relations between London and Beijing. Senior British officials have visited the People’s Republic of China (PRC), while at home, chaos unfolded over Chinese investment in Britain’s critical infrastructure.

On 11th April, Jonathan Reynolds, Secretary of State for Business and Trade, took the reins of British Steel from Jingye, its Chinese owner, to keep the last two blast furnaces in the United Kingdom (UK) burning. Reynolds did not state whether he believed the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) played a part in Jingye’s effective decision to allow the fires of the furnaces to burn out. However, he did say that he would now view any involvement of an entity from the PRC in the UK’s critical infrastructure in a ‘different way’.

The Chinese embassy in London had something to say about Reynold’s comments – see the Eyes on Zhongnanhai section for analysis.

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