All That Glistens

Description

In the 2010s, as China slid deeper into authoritarianism and the UK veered towards political uncertainty, the two countries declared a ‘Golden Era’ of relations. This challenge to the established international order came amid rising global concern around Chinese party-state intrusions abroad.

All That Glistens peels away the shiny exterior of the Sino-British ‘golden age’ to reveal a relationship built on global capitalism, British corruption and Chinese Communist Party influence over UK affairs—to the disquiet of London’s allies.

Drawing on his years on the ground in Beijing, as well as investigative research using open-source intelligence, Martin Thorley’s timely book sheds light on a murky aspect of international relations. He reveals coordinated Chinese state actions reaching into the heart of Parliament, and the widespread compromise of British politics by Chinese commercial entities—particularly nuclear energy, property development and currency-trading enterprises. Exposing the close connections between Western financialisation and China’s geopolitical interference, this book offers a cautionary tale for all liberal democracies.

Reviews

‘Martin Thorley takes a hard look at the Golden Era of Sino-British relations under George Osborne, as Britain tried to bring in Chinese investment into key infrastructure projects and position itself as a banking centre for the RMB. At the same time China tried in a rather clumsy way to infiltrate the British establishment.  Many of the initiatives soured as the new government China Audit reveals.’ — Jasper Becker, former China correspondent for The Guardian and The Independent; and author of Made in China: Wuhan, Covid and the Quest for Biotech Supremacy

‘A stylish narrative on the rise and fall of Chinese Communist Party political reach in Britain over a decade. The author documents a heady mix of idealism, ideology, and avarice that saw some leading figures sail close to the wind in their courtship of China.’ — Greg Austin, Australia-China Relations Institute, University of Sydney; and co-author of Great Power Offensive Cyber Campaigns: Experiments in Power

‘This is one of the most important books to have been published on the UK-China relationship. It tells a rich story. Thorley demonstrates vividly that the political and security compromises repeatedly fail to translate into economic rewards. The conclusions and case studies remain disturbingly timely and the book deserves a wide readership beyond the China-watching community.’ — Andrew Small, Senior Fellow at the German Marshall Fund’s Indo-Pacific programme, and author of The Rupture: China and the Global Race for the Future

‘Through a well-conceived series of case studies on nuclear energy, financial trading and property, All that Glistens reveals the lucrative and self-serving connections between British politicians and the Chinese state. Thorley’s analysis, that the UK is a corrupt enabler of authoritarian politics makes original and disturbing reading.’ — Caroline Knowles, Global Professorial Fellow, Queen Mary, University of London; and author of Serious Money: Walking Plutocratic London 

Author(s)

Martin Thorley is a senior analyst at the Global Initiative against Transnational Organized Crime, exploring state crime and shadow international relations. A Mandarin-speaker and former postdoctoral research fellow at the University of Exeter, he spent over six years living, studying and building a business in China. He holds a PhD in Contemporary Chinese Studies from the University of Nottingham, and is a former Chiang Ching-kuo doctoral fellow.