A Conservative cabinet minister took a swipe at David Cameron over his past support for closer ties with China in the latest sign of Tory infighting.
Security minister Tom Tugendhat appeared to mock the changed stance by the foreign secretary – who once hailed a “golden era” of UK relations with Beijing while he was PM.
Mr Tugendhat – one of the Tory party’s leading “hawks” on the Chinese government – re-posted a Foreign Office tweet showing Lord Cameron with Sebastien Lai.
Mr Lai’s father is the leading Hong Kong dissent Jimmy Lai, a politician who has been detained by the Chinese authorities after the crackdown on the territory’s autonomy.
Mr Tugendhat said on X, formerly known as Twitter: “I guess the golden era is over.”
As Tory prime minister, Mr Cameron hailed a “golden era” of UK-China ties, and even took Chinese premier Xi Jinping for a pint at his local pub during a state visit.
Lord Cameron was given a speedy peerage by Rishi Sunak as the PM brought the former leader back into government during a shock reshuffle last month.
The foreign secretary now sits at the cabinet table with Mr Tugendhat, with who is supposed to work closely on security issues.
David Cameron has defended his foreign policy as PM— (PA Wire)
On the meeting with Mr Lai, the Foreign Office said Lord Cameron had met him “to listen to his concerns for his father, Jimmy Lai, detained in Hong Kong”.
The department added: “The UK opposes the National Security Law and will continue to stand by Jimmy Lai and the people of HK [Hong Kong].”
Earlier this month Lord Cameron said Britain would continue its engagement with China after speaking to his counterpart in Beijing for the first time in his new job.
The foreign secretary said he and Wang Yi had spoken about their aim for “constructive” UK-Sino relations.
Relations between the West and China have deteriorated dramatically in the years since Mr Cameron left No 10 in 2016.
Lord Cameron has also acknowledged that the Asian power had become “much more aggressive, much more assertive” since he left No 10, while defending the foreign policy of his period in office.
He insisted that engaging with China – a “fifth of humanity” – today was necessary to solve challenges such as climate change.
Mr Sunak has insisted Lord Cameron’s shock political comeback will not mean the return of his golden era approach to Beijing. The PM described the pursuit of closer economic ties over the previous decade as “naive”.
Some Tory MPs have pushed Mr Sunak to go further and brand China a “threat”, amid concerns about recent attempts to reduce tensions.
