Ex-aide of Sir Edward Heath to become UK's first Trade Commissioner in China

Richard Burn worked with the former Tory PM who established diplomatic relations with China in the 1970s

Edward Heath himself had extensive business interests in China (PA)

An ex-political aide to Sir Edward Heath will be made the UK’s first Trade Commissioner, tasked with boosting Britain’s commercial ties with China.

Richard Burn advised and wrote speeches for the former Conservative Prime Minister, who established full diplomatic relations with China in the 1970s.

He will now become one of nine new HM Trade Commissioners answering to the department of Cabinet minister Liam Fox.

Announcing the move while accompanying Theresa May on a visit to China, International Trade Secretary Mr Fox said: “With his existing wealth of trade and investment experience, Richard will provide intelligence on the ground, deciding what tailored action is required in China, and playing a vital role in our future global trading relationships.”

Mr Burn worked as an administrative officer to the Hong Kong government before the handover, and then in 1986 worked for Sir Edward in Westminster, advising him particularly on issues relating to China and the European Union.

After three years he left and set up Batey Burn Ltd with another of Sir Edward’s aides to advise UK companies trying to break into the growing Chinese market, an operation which the former PM – who himself had extensive China-based business interests – acted as an informal adviser to.

He later went on to become corporate relations director for the drinks giant Diageo in the Asia-Pacific region.

He said: “My role as HM Trade Commissioner for China will be to build on the strong links already in place, as we intensify the ‘golden era’ of UK-China trade.

“My top priority will be to achieve better market access for sectors in which the UK excels.”

Each of the Commissioners around the world will lead on export promotion, investment and trade policy overseas on behalf of the Government.

Critics have argued the jobs could be done by the existing diplomatic service, but the importance attached to the new role is reflected in the lucrative £120,000-a-year salary that each of the nine jobs will carry, along with home travel costs and private school fees paid for by the Government.

Areas the nine posts will cover include Africa, Asia-Pacific, China, Eastern Europe and Central Asia, Europe, Latin America, the Middle East, North America and South Asia.

The announcement comes during a UK trade visit to China led by the Prime Minister in which she announced about £9bn of new deals for British companies.

Trade between the two countries is at record levels, worth over £59bn annually, with British exports to China growing by more than 60 per cent since 2010. The UK is already one of the largest European recipients of Chinese foreign direct investment.

On Thursday, Ms May met President Xi Jinping in Beijing in the diplomatic high point of her three-day trip.

Seated opposite President Xi in the opulent Diaoyutai State Guesthouse, Ms May repeated Britain and China were enjoying a “golden era” in their relationship, and added that she wanted to “take further forward the global strategic partnership that we have established”.

Deals signed on the trip are thought to include £1bn in financial services agreements, a £750m deal by energy giant BP and a scheme by a Chinese ecommerce outlet to sell £2bn of UK goods over the next two years.

The PM said that once Britain leaves the EU it will be free to strike its own trade deals and pointed to the joint trade review, which will now take place with China as the first step towards a future trade agreement. Stating that he was looking forward to building on the success of the UK-China relationship, Mr Xi quoted Shakespeare, saying: “What’s past is prologue.”