James Cleverly, the Education Secretary, has accused Rishi Sunak of being late to realize the threat posed by China.
Cleverly, who is backing Liz Truss in the race for No 10, said the Foreign Secretary had been worrying about Beijing “for a long time”, while Sunak had only just started talking about the topic “now”.
Speaking on Times Radio, Mr Cleverly said: “Well, look, Liz, who I’m supporting, has taken a strong line on China’s influence globally, whether through the Belt and Road Initiative and the road, which I believe is putting undue pressure on a number of developing countries, has spoken of the freedom network to ensure that like-minded free and open societies come together to provide a significant counterweight to the influence of the china
“He’s been talking about this for a long time, so I’m very happy that Rishi is talking about the issues that Liz has been talking about for a long time, and of course we have to look at China’s influence, not just in the world. stage, but here in the UK.”