Lord Vallance is currently expected to represent the UK in the talks (Alamy)
3 min read
The government is set to travel to Beijing next month to hold talks with China over cooperation in science and technology.
Lord Vallance, a minister in the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, is currently expected to represent the UK in the talks, PoliticsHome understands.
The planned meeting, known as the Joint Commission Science, Technology and Innovation, would be the first since 2021, when, according to the Chinese Ministry of Science and Technology, a virtual bilateral discussion was held during the coronavirus pandemic.
The last face-to-face meeting was in 2018, when the two nations celebrated 40 years since the signing of the first bilateral scientific treaty between the UK and China.
It also comes amid wider questions about the UK’s relationship with China, with the government under continuing pressure to explain the circumstances that led to the Crown Prosecution Service dropping charges against two British men accused of spying for China.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced on Wednesday that the government will publish the witness statements provided by the deputy national security adviser, Matthew Collins, “in full” after a “short process”.
The PM denied that Collins was subjected to political influence before sharing evidence with the CPS.
An upcoming decision on whether to allow China to develop a new embassy in central London is also under the spotlight, as the Labour government tries to balance economic ties with Beijing and China’s threats to UK national security.
Those who advocate a distant UK relationship with China point to Beijing’s human rights record, its conduct in Hong Kong, and the cybersecurity threat to Britain.
Government sources stressed to PoliticsHome that collaboration with China in science and technology will only be pursued where there are clear UK and global benefits to doing so, and following rigorous assessment of risk.
Speaking in the House of Commons on Monday, security minister Dan Jarvis said: “We fully recognise that China poses a series of threats to UK national security, yet we must also be alive to the fact that China does present us with opportunities.”
Last week, The Guardian reported that senior foreign office civil servant Oliver Robbins would travel to China this week on “long-planned” government business.
Following the UK-China Economic and Financial Dialogue in Beijing in mid-January this year, Chancellor Rachel Reeves and Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng said there is a “mutual benefit and strategic importance to maintaining a durable, stable and respectful relationship”.
As part of this, both the UK and China committed to holding regular dialogue in a number of areas, including science and technology. The pair noted the importance of cooperation on global challenges such as climate change, health, environmental protection, energy security and food security.
