Bringing Nuances to the UK-China Relationship: An interview with Chris Torrens, BritCham Vice-Chair

Growing up in a sleepy town in the west of England, Chris Torrens didn’t imagine he would end up spending much of his working life in China. After graduating from Leeds University with a BA in Modern Chinese Studies, Chris did odd jobs and travelled before joining Control Risks,  a UK-based specialist risk consultancy where he would end up spending more than 20 years – albeit with a 12-year interlude at UK government relations firm Batey Burn, the Economist and PwC. In March of this year, Chris joined APCO Worldwide where he now runs the Greater China business. Beyond the boardroom, Chris loves cycling in the mountains around Beijing and walking the two stray dogs he and his wife adopted during the Covid years in Shanghai.

Chris’ earliest exposure to China was via his aunt, an aerospace engineer dispatched to Beijing by Rolls-Royce following the resumption of Sino-British trade in 1974. Influenced by anecdotes about life in China and highly unusual gifts (for an English schoolboy), he became fascinated by China and by the age of twelve had already set his heart on studying Chinese and visiting the country for himself.

In September 1984 Chris arrived at Fudan University in Shanghai (having to change flights in Bahrain and Hong Kong, there being no direct connection) to start the second year of his four-year course. This exchange year proved to be life-changing as Chris travelled – in between his studies – to Beijing, Harbin, Shenyang, Dalian, Hainan, Luoyang, Chengdu and Xi’an before a final arduous road trip to Urumqi, Kashgar, Dunhuang and Lhasa.  After graduating in 1987, Chris was unable to find a job – there being little demand for Chinese speakers – so he spent a year teaching English in Taipei and appearing as clueless foreigner in TV comedy shows. Back in London and still unable to find a job using his Chinese, Chris worked as a cycle courier for a year before a stroke of good luck landed him a job at Control Risks as an Asia risk analyst.

Chris was to spend 22 years at Control Risks – from 1989 to 1994 and again from 2006 to 2024 – and almost as much time living and working in Greater China, from 1994 to 2009 and again five years ago. His return to China followed a rekindling of ties with Chinese companies in the Middle East and Africa, where China’s Belt and Road Initiative was in full swing, his ties with China were rekindled when he started working with Chinese clients operating in the Middle East and Africa. In 2019, the calling of China finally brought him back as Partner of Control Risks’ Shanghai office.

After the 20th Party Congress, 2023 had been an especially challenging year for a risk consultancy like Control Risks, amid the policy reprioritization towards national security and away from economic development. This partly led to Chris’ departure from the firm, but his deep-rooted love for China persists as strongly as the first time he was issued the “Foreign Expert” visa. When some Western media started to churn out fear-mongering reports or hyperbolic prognoses of China’s foreign relations, Chris often felt the acute frustration. Now as Managing Director at APCO China, Chris would soon embark on international trips to the political hubs including Washington DC to humanise the China narratives. When asked why, Chris replied in a gentle tone with conviction: “Those who are lucky enough to live and work in China for so long, have a responsibility to bring nuance and humanity to the UK-China relationship.”

Speaking with Chris, we have been reminded of two life philosophies. One, finding out and sticking with your passion is not merely a motivational cliche, but something that could pay rich dividends and transcend hard times. Two, as the old adage goes “To whom much is given much is required”, holding a high position should not should not lessen one’s sense of responsibility but rather, amplify it.