Conservative Friends of the Chinese

The Conservative Friends of the Chinese^[1] is linked to the Conservative Party in the UK and is a membership organisation which engages with the British Chinese community. It actively campaigns for the Conservative Party in the British Chinese community.^[2]

In the run up to the British General Elections in 2015, it was reported by YouGov and The Times that the 'Tories have won over Britain's Chinese community^[3]' and 'the party has a 22-point lead among Britons of Chinese origin, who number roughly 400,000 in England and Wales.^[4]' The organisation's Director is based at the Conservative Campaign Headquarters at 4 Matthew Parker Street in Central London.

Since its formation, the group has organised a series of high profile and well attended events by UK Cabinet Ministers in to engage the British Chinese community.^[5]

The Group was launched by Boris Johnson in May 2013 to an audience of 200 from the community^[6] and then followed by an event at No. 11 Downing Street with the Chancellor George Osborne.^[7]

Mission statement

Their mission is to develop meaningful interaction and understanding between the Conservative Party and the various British Chinese communities. The Conservative Friends of the Chinese is a member-led organisation that champions the values and culture of the British Chinese communities and emphasises the parallels with the beliefs of the Conservative Party. It strongly advocates for closer relations between China and Britain and is an impressive source of information on China, the British Chinese communities and the global Chinese Diaspora for its key stakeholders.^[8]

Patrons

• The Rt. Hon. Jeremy Hunt MP^[9]
• The Rt Hon The Lord Geoffrey Howe of Aberavon Kt CH QC PC^[10]

Board and notable members

Chairs:

• Geoffrey Clifton-Brown MP (Parliamentary Chairman)^[11]
• Lord Wei of Shoreditch (Nat Wei)^[12]

The Group is reputed to be one of the largest organisations in the British Chinese community with members from all walks of the community,^[13] including key community and business leaders.

Another active member of the group is also Alan Mak, the Conservative MP for Havant. He, however has been quoted in the media saying 'he cares little for his ethnic identity, preferring to focus more on the "bigger and more important" issues. He also dismissed as naive the belief that his victory would mean the party would better address the needs of the 500,000 or so British Chinese and East Asians, the country's third-largest ethnic group. "And I certainly have no interest in what people in Hong Kong or China think of me, because I am not representing them. I am representing the people of Havant...'.^[14]

The Political Director of the group is Jackson Ng,^[15] a Barrister and a political advisor in the House of Lords who was the Conservative Party's Parliamentary Candidate for Liverpool Riverside^[16] in the May 2015 British General Elections.^[17]

Sub-groups and other sister organisations

The Conservative Friends of the Chinese works closely with other affiliated groups of the Conservative Party and they are listed below.

• Conservative Parliamentary China Group
• Conservative Friends of the Chinese (London) - Chinese Conservative Group, Cities of London & Westminster Conservative Association (CLWCA)
• The Shanghai Blue Club - Conservatives Abroad
• The Beijing Blue Club - Conservatives Abroad

References