The Chinese President’s visit to the UK ended today in the heart of the Northern Powerhouse. David Cameron took Xi Jinping up to Manchester to announce various new deals that supposedly demonstrate China’s commitment to the British economy.
The Prime Minister said the president’s appearance in Manchester highlighted China’s commitment to the northern project and will ‘see real investment going into the north.’ But how much money is China really putting into the Northern economy? Today’s FT says the deal is netting just £4 million of actual investment for the North — the Beijing Construction and Engineering Group will finance the construction of an apartment block at Middlewood Locks, a desolate piece of land between Manchester and Salford.
The central message of this trip was conformation that Hainan Airlines will operate direct flights between Manchester and Beijing — something that will apparently contribute £50 million to the city’s economy. In a sign of how much more northern council leaders would like Beijing to do, the president was shown £24 billion of infrastructure projects that Chinese businesses might want to fund in the future.
Get Britain's best politics newsletters
Register to get The Spectator's insight and opinion straight to your inbox. You can then read two free articles each week.
Already a subscriber? Log in
Comments
Join the debate for just $5 for 3 months
Be part of the conversation with other Spectator readers by getting your first three months for $5.
UNLOCK ACCESS Just $5 for 3 monthsAlready a subscriber? Log in