The public are divided on the prospect of fostering closer ties with China if the US-UK relationship breaks down
Key takeaways
- Half of Britons see China as unfriendly or hostile; a quarter see it as a friendly nation
- 40% think the UK-China relationship benefits China more than the UK – only 6% think the UK gets more out of the relationship
- 46% of Britons think the relationship is a positive when it comes to the availability of consumer goods, but 41% say it is negative for UK security
- Britons tend to think the UK diplomatic approach to China is about right, and are unwilling to take a tougher line if it meant the cost of living would go up
- Britons are divided on building closer relations with China if the US-UK relationship broke down
With Keir Starmer set to make the first visit to China by a British leader since Theresa May in 2018, accompanied by a group of UK CEOs, the visit will raise questions about the direction the UK’s future relationship with the Asian nation should take – particularly against the backdrop of deteriorating relations with the USA.
Now a new YouGov survey examines British public opinion towards UK-China relations.
How do Britons see China?
Currently, around a quarter of Britons see China as either a friend and ally (4%) or as a friendly rival (27%). A further 29% see relations with China as unfriendly, while 22% see the nation as generally being a hostile threat.
This represents an eight point improvement in the number of people seeing China in friendly terms (almost all in the friendly rival category) since our previous poll in October. This makes it one of only two countries from a list of 15 that experienced a notable change in public attitudes in that time period – the other being the USA (down 17pts).
Breaking attitudes towards China down by 2024 vote shows that most Reform UK, Conservative and Liberal Democrat voters see the UK’s relationship with China in negative terms (61-72%), compared to 49% of Labour voters and 38% of Greens.
When it comes to the level of threat Britons think China poses to the UK, 25% consider the country to be a “major” threat – putting it on a similar level to Iran (27%) and North Korea (29%), but far behind Russia (62%).
In fact, about as many Britons (23%) now see the USA as a major threat to the UK as they do China (25%), no doubt a result of Donald Trump’s recent threats against Greenland.
What benefits do Britons think the relationship with China brings?
Overall, Britons tend to take the view that the current relationship between the UK and China benefits the latter more, with 40% saying so. Only 6% think the UK is getting more out of it, while 23% think both countries benefit equally.
When it comes to more specific aspects, Britons are most likely to think that our relationship with China has a positive impact on the availability of consumer goods in the UK, with 46% saying so.
Three in ten (29%) also think that China’s investment in the UK economy is a positive (more than the 19% who see it as a negative).
On the other hand, four in ten (41%) think the relationship is bad for the UK’s security, while 36% think it has been negative for both tackling climate change and human rights in China.
What should the UK’s relationship with China be?
The most common view is that the government’s diplomatic approach to China is currently “about right”, at 36%, compared to 24% who think it is too friendly, and 13% who don’t think it is friendly enough.
But are the public willing to take a tougher line of China in the face of potential trade-offs? Britons are divided on taking a tougher diplomatic approach if it meant an increase in the price of consumer goods, with 38% saying they would support doing so, but 39% opposed.
And in the event that a tougher approach resulted in an increase in the overall cost of living, or an economic downturn in the UK, most Britons are opposed to rocking the boat (55-58%).
Those who specifically say the UK relationship with China is “too friendly” are willing to support a tougher line on China in the face of higher consumer good costs (67%), and cost of living increases (51%), but not if it caused an economic downturn (38% - with 48% opposed).
In a world where the USA is hostile towards European countries – including the UK – it may be necessary to seek partnerships with other major world powers. Indeed, there already appears to be desire to distance ourselves from the US, with 45% of Britons now seeing the US-UK relationship as “too friendly”.
The public are divided on the prospect of cosying up to China in the event that relations with the US broke down, however, with 38% saying they would support a closer relationship in this scenario, while 36% would be opposed.
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Photo: Getty
