Tuesday 29th October 2013

(10 years, 6 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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Lord Hague of Richmond Portrait Mr Hague
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My hon. Friend is absolutely right. Britain is very much open for business, and it is in China’s interest to invest in it. According to official Chinese statistics, the United Kingdom is now the most popular destination in Europe for Chinese investment, and the fourth most popular globally. Last year, our own exports to China hit £1 billion a month for the first time.

Keith Vaz Portrait Keith Vaz (Leicester East) (Lab)
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Some of the ministerial delegations included British business men so that the case could be made for British business. How many of them were of Chinese origin?

Lord Hague of Richmond Portrait Mr Hague
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I do not have that information at my fingertips, but I imagine that quite a few of them were. I will write to the right hon. Gentleman with the details. What I can say is that we have built a tremendous relationship—in both directions—with China, founded on the activities of Chinese business men and British business people of Chinese origin, and we will continue to do so.