We'd been in China the week before, and every night we'd watched the state TV news broadcasts, usually starting with a piece on Premier Wen Jiabao's seemingly endless odyssey around the world, solemnly meeting heads of state, sealing deals for resource supplies, or otherwise checking out new outposts of empire. Now I was strolling through Cofton Park in my native Birmingham, looking down on the remains of the once mighty British icon, the Longbridge car works. The same works that through my childhood was employing 25,000 people, churning out the Mini, the Austin 1100, fine and fabulous machines like the A35 and A40 even. An ultimate symbol of British industrial might and design and manufacturing prowess, I always thought. (I was a bit naive in those days!)
But what was that? Was it really a Chinese flag flying proudly next to the MG sign? It was indeed, and amazingly, Chinese Premier Wen himself was on his way to visit the place!
While the remnants of the huge site were being bulldozed away over the last few years, a deal was done with the Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation to salvage a bit of car manufacturing there. It's all a bit mysterious to many of us as to who's benefitting how, and what else may come from this, but at the moment the enterprise is said to be employing a few Britons, assembling a British designed car from Chinese made parts.
And the Premier made it clear the project was important to him. On his British visit he flew in to Birmingham, and visited only Longbridge, Stratford (it seems he's a Shakespear fan), and London for talks with the Prime Minister.
Cartoon credits: The Independent & Dave Brown
