On March 21, Yin Yong, Mayor of Beijing, met with a cross-party delegation of members of the UK Parliament led by Sir David Lidington, Former Minister for the Cabinet Office and President of the Great Britain-China Centre (GBCC).

Yin Yong remarked that China and the UK are both major economies in the world, and their bilateral ties are growing increasingly closer. Last September, Premier Li Qiang met with Prime Minister Rishi Sunak during the G20 Summit in New Delhi, reaching extensive consensus that laid the groundwork for pragmatic cooperation between China and the UK in the next stage. Beijing is an international modern metropolis with a time-honored history and tremendous vitality. In recent years, Beijing has kept to its strategic positioning as the capital to strengthen its role as the “four centers” and improved its capacity to deliver “four services”. With the implementation of the new Master Plan and solid progress in high-quality development, the city has undergone profound transformation and historical changes. Beijing maintains close ties with the UK at various levels, and new gains have been made through the exchanges. Moving forward, Beijing will follow upon the consensus reached by the two leaders, and deepen cooperation with the UK in areas such as economy, trade, environmental protection, and urban governance, to advance the building of a stable and mutually beneficial China-UK relationship.

Sir David Lidington and other delegation members expressed optimism about the long-term growth potential of the Chinese economy and applauded Beijing’s progress in economic and social development. They also expressed their willingness to serve as a bridge to facilitate mutually beneficial cooperation across various fields between the two countries.

Mu Peng, Secretary General of the People’s Government of Beijing Municipality, attended the meeting.

(Written by Yang Qi and Song Jiayin)