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George Osborne and Boris Johnson have tried to move on from speculation surrounding their
separate trips to China. The two prominent Conservatives crossed paths in Beijing...
And while they were all smiles, the Chancellor had to urge the Mayor of London to sit closer
to him when posing for photographs.
During a speech, the Chancellor told an audience of students his visit was about encouraging
China to invest in the UK.
"There are some in the West who see China growing and they are nervous. They think of
the world as a cake, and the bigger the slice China takes, the smaller the slice that they
will get. I totally and utterly reject this pessimistic view."
Mr Osbourne also revealed a somewhat surprising source had helped him learn about China.
"I am assisted in this task by my ten-year-old daughter who is now studying Mandarin in her
school. And she comes home every evening with the Chinese characters which she has to learn
to draw and so through her I'm learning a bit of basic Chinese."
Boris Johnson praised the Government's decision to simplify visa applications for Chinese
visitors who want to enter the UK.
"London is the home to more Chinese students than any other city on earth outside China
of course, where you have a lot of Chinese students. And I think that is a fantastic
thing. And I very much welcome what I am hearing from our government about trying to increase
those numbers."
Mr Johnson's typically jokey manner seemed to translate well with the young audience.
During a questions and answer session only one question was directed at Mr Osbourne.