UK Prime Minister’s Visit to China Concludes: BritCham China Supports Renewed UK–China Business Engagement

6th February 2026
Chamber News, Member News

From 28 to 31 January 2026, UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer visited China, marking the first visit by a British Prime Minister since 2018. He was joined by the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, Peter Kyle, and the Economic Secretary to the Treasury, Lucy Rigby. Together, they led a delegation of nearly 60 British business leaders and cultural organisations to Beijing and Shanghai. British Chamber of Commerce China Chair Chris Torrens participated in the full programme alongside the delegation.

The visit delivered progress across a number of market access and cooperation issues that the Chamber has consistently raised with both UK and Chinese stakeholders, underlining the value of sustained dialogue in supporting commercial activity for British companies operating in China.

China remains the UK’s third-largest trading partner for goods and services and the UK’s fifth-largest export market. While the UK continues to run a trade deficit with China in goods, it maintains a moderate surplus in trade in services, which reached £11.4 billion. Against this backdrop, the commitment to undertake a feasibility study on a potential trade in services agreement represents a constructive step in leveraging the UK’s world-class services sector to support more balanced bilateral trade over time.

This emphasis on the untapped potential of services cooperation was echoed in the Chamber’s most recent Sentiment Survey, in which 85% of legal services respondents and 68% of financial services respondents reported optimism about the year ahead.

Among the British business community operating in China, there is growing interest in areas where China’s forthcoming Five-Year Plan aligns with the UK’s Modern Industrial Strategy. In addition to approval for British law firms to establish joint legal operations in the Shanghai Free Trade Zone, progress on the approval of innovative vaccines and medical devices represents a meaningful opportunity for the UK’s life sciences sector.

The British Chamber of Commerce in China also welcomes the more constructive tone relating to Chinese investment into non-sensitive sectors in the UK, alongside agreements and memoranda of understanding signed during the visit in areas including new energy, electric vehicles and e-commerce. British services companies operating in China are well placed to support Chinese firms on their investment journeys to the UK and other third markets. Government-to-government engagement at the highest level sends an important signal to Chinese companies considering overseas investment, reinforcing the UK’s position as a welcoming and dependable business partner.

BritCham’s Involvement in Beijing and Shanghai

The visit programme was structured around government-to-government meetings, business-to-government engagement alongside the CEO delegation, and a series of wider commercial and stakeholder events.

The UK Government and British Embassy in China coordinated the official programme. Chair Chris Torrens accompanied the delegation for key engagements in Beijing, while members of the Chamber team and Board supported and attended parallel activities across the visit.

The Chamber co-hosted a regional investment session at the UK–China Business Growth Forum held at the Bank of China headquarters. Chair Chris Torrens moderated a session headlined by Economic Secretary to the Treasury Lucy Rigby, who delivered opening remarks, followed by a panel discussion with business leaders that included the Mayor of the West Midlands and representatives of a Chinese private enterprise investing in Liverpool.

This visit represents the culmination of 18 months of pragmatic re-engagement by the UK Government, supporting a more mature and stable UK–China relationship in which economic cooperation, climate objectives and security considerations are approached with clarity and appropriate safeguards. Throughout this period, the Chamber has shared member priorities and market access concerns with UK stakeholders, alongside constructive recommendations from British industry on how businesses can contribute to both UK and Chinese economic growth.

During a series of meetings held in parallel with Joint Economic and Trade Commission-related engagements, Chair Chris Torrens emphasised to Secretary of State Kyle and Minister of Commerce Wang the importance businesses place on visa facilitation and travel as a means of increasing mutual understanding and driving investment. The Chamber welcomes recent indications of progress in this area and expects further steps that support easier business travel to China.

Several further priorities emphasised by the Chamber featured in announcements made during the visit. These included reductions in whisky tariffs, a major Chamber priority in our 2025 Position Paper, as well as progress on expanding structured dialogue mechanisms such as the Joint Economic and Trade Commission and cooperation in services, sport, technical and vocational education and training, and food safety. Of the twelve market-access-related outcomes referenced in official communications, seven had been raised in recent Chamber Position Papers, including enabling the import of classic and vintage cars, cooperation on sporting event venue safety standards, and TVET qualification recognition.

Media Engagement

During the visit, the British Chamber of Commerce in China engaged with Chinese, British and international media to share on-the-ground business perspectives.

Chair Chris Torrens participated in broadcast interviews with Bloomberg, CGTN and the BBC, reflecting on his experience as part of the delegation and broader trends in business sentiment among British companies operating in China. Managing Director Graeme Wallace also appeared on BBC Radio 5 Live Breakfast, BBC Scotland and BBC Radio 4’s Today Programme to discuss the commercial significance of the visit and the outlook for UK–China business engagement.