The United Kingdom got its third prime minister since the European referendum of 2016 in the form of Boris Johnson, but many of the problems that plagued his predecessor persist.

While the question of how to implement Brexit continues to dominate headlines, the issue of Britain's relationship with China has not received the same amount of coverage even though it is an equally important issue for Britain's future.

The Sino-British relationship was recently invoked by Johnson's apparent endorsement of China's Belt and the Road Initiative. This has come as something of a surprise given the assumption that a Johnson premiership would further ties with the United States rather than China. But judging by his record, this should not have been so unexpected. After all Johnson served in the Cameron government in what was the "golden era" of Sino-British ties, as declared by the then chancellor of the exchequer, George Osborne. This saw Britain join the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank.

As the UK inches closer to Brexit, a deeper Sino-British relationship has become imperative for the new leadership's foreign policy. This is a priority. Another "golden era" is required to further these ties in the face of the wider pivot of economic and political power toward Asia.

One area where these ties can be furthered is the trading relationship between the two countries. China is the UK's second-largest trading partner outside of the European Union, being the destination for British exports worthL22.3 million ($27.14 million) and has often been held up as an alternative to the EU for Britain's trade relations. Should Britain leave the EU, it would be necessary to deepen trading ties between the UK and China. And that would require greater exports of British produce to China.

China's centrality to Britain is evident in the role it plays in the British economy, where London has become the European capital of the renminbi. It has seen the daily trade of offshore renminbi reach L69 billion in the second quarter of 2018. London's status has been further cemented in that it now accounts for 38.63 percent of transactions in offshore renminbi, overtaking Hong Kong. It is this role that will play a significant part in shaping a stronger Sino-British relationship. China has also become an integral factor in British higher education, with Chinese students coming in droves to study at British universities. This has seen Chinese scholars become the largest contingent of foreign students in the United Kingdom, with a 30 percent increase in the number applications from China. While this can be attributed to Britain's prestige in education, it is also a result of the seemingly hostile environment Chinese students face in the US. This has thus made the UK an attractive alternative.

Chinese scholars will also become more important for Britain's higher education sector, if the apparent drop in applications from EU nations by 3 percent, according to data from the Russel Group in 2018, is an indication of developments to come.

On the other hand, it is possible that China will also become an attractive destination for British scholars. Chinese universities have launched a push to recruit students and academics with several events aimed at achieving this held in London. China is presently the third most popular overseas study destination, with 379,000 students coming to study in China in 2015. British students have contributed to this figure, with the number of students seeking to work and study in China tripling in the same year. This has also seen a growing relationship between British and Chinese universities, with several, such as Liverpool and Nottingham, establishing campuses in China. It is the field of education that is an expression of the wider Sino-British exchanges.

While the Sino-British relationship continues to grow, remaining a constant regardless of the change in prime minister, the overall importance of ties has grown, with the post-2016 world making it a further imperative. While Britain's departure from the EU and the consequences of it are still uncertain, what is certain is the need for a stronger relationship between London and Beijing and the continuation of the golden era of this relationship to achieve a mutually beneficial outcome.

The author is a doctoral researcher in politics and international relations at the University of Surrey. He specializes in Chinese foreign policy in the developing world.

The author contributed this article to China Watch exclusively. The views expressed do not necessarily reflect those of China Watch.

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