From December 4 to 7, Dean and Party Secretary Deng Chundong carried out academic activities in the UK
On the evening of December 4, local time, Director Deng Chundong met with Stephen Perry, Chairman of the 48 Group Club [1], and Keith Bennett, Vice Chairman of the Group. Director Deng and Chairman Perry reached a high degree of consensus on strengthening Party committee leadership over State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) and ensuring that SOE leaders adhere to socialist values while pursuing profitability. Mr. Perry opined that the way for the world to escape the current cycle of economic and financial crisis lies in China’s Belt and Road Initiative [2] and Africa’s economic development. However, he noted that the prerequisite for realizing these two goals is the formation of a relative balance of power among the world's various poles—the United States, China, Russia, and Europe—to maintain relative stability in the global political environment. Director Deng expressed high praise and heartfelt gratitude for Perry’s father, Jack Perry, the founder of the 48 Group. As the first Briton to break through the West’s economic blockade of New China [3], Jack Perry led 48 British companies to conduct trade with China. Deng expressed hope that Mr. Perry would continue to assist China as he has in the past.
On the afternoon of December 5, local time, Director Deng Chundong met with Ken Livingstone, the former Mayor of London. The two sides candidly exchanged views on the current economic situation in the European Union and how to strengthen cooperation between China and the EU in economics, trade, culture, and other fields. The two sides also discussed low-rent housing policies for modern metropolises. Livingstone argued that constructing low-rent housing is a crucial measure for restraining the excessive rise of housing prices in major cities. Although he had envisioned alleviating the rapid rise of London’s property prices through the construction of low-rent housing during his tenure as Mayor, he noted that due to the differences between the political systems of China and Britain, he lacked the power and resources to construct such housing.
On the evening of December 5, local time, Director Deng Chundong engaged in extensive and in-depth exchanges with ten individuals from various industries and academic fields in the UK. The discussions covered topics such as Brexit, the election of Donald Trump as President of the United States, and the political and economic situation in Europe since the 2008 global economic and financial crisis.
On the morning of December 6, local time, Director Deng Chundong chaired a seminar at the University of Westminster titled “The Political and Economic Situation in Europe and America After the 2008 Global Financial Crisis.” Twelve British scholars participated in this seminar. Renowned British Marxist scholars Sean Sayers, David McLellan, and Michael Burke all argued that the Brexit referendum signaled internal political divisions within Britain, noting that even within the Conservative Party itself, no consensus had been reached on whether the UK should leave the EU. They observed that the disparity in economic development among EU member states has intensified; Germany is the primary beneficiary of the European Single Market, while countries in Eastern and Southern Europe have been left behind, creating a risk of the EU’s dissolution. British International Relations scholars Jude Woodward and John Ross, among others, also shared their views on the trajectory of US foreign policy following Trump’s inauguration and the characteristics of the international political landscape.
On December 7, local time, Director Deng Chundong led a five-person delegation—including Yu Bin, Director of the Department of Marxist Principles; and Luan Wenlian, Peng Wutang, and Chen Shuoying, researchers from the Institute of Marxism Studies—on a visit to the editorial office of the New Left Review. This visit marked the first contact between this preeminent Western left-wing journal and a delegation from the People’s Republic of China since its founding in 1960. Editors from New Left Review and Verso Books (the publishing house established by the journal in 1970) introduced their recent influential works. Both sides expressed their vision for strengthening cooperation in the future.