Today, U.K. Business Secretary Vince Cable will urge business leaders to support a drive to double the number of U.K. exchange students who travel to China as part of plans to boost trade links.
In a letter to FTSE 100 U.K. CEOs, Mr. Cable will call upon businesses to support Generation U.K., the British Council's flagship programme, which aims to see 80,000 U.K. students participate in academic study or work experience programmes in China by 2020.
Mr. Cable made the announcement on a visit to Sun Yat-sen University in Guangzhou, where he also announced that the Chinese university had signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the University of Glasgow and CBI member The University of Warwick to offer student exchanges.
The University of Glasgow will be welcoming medical student exchanges, and the University of Warwick's student exchanges will be in the areas of systems biology, nursing, digital pathology, and integrated healthcare systems.
Mr. Cable said, "The global centre of gravity is shifting eastwards to major economic powerhouses like China. But while China sends around 100,000 students each year to the U.K., we send little more than 5,000 in the opposite direction – and that's two-thirds more than we sent in 2010.
"By contrast, France sends over 8,000 students to China annually.
"We must raise our game. New independent research shows that a lack of language skills in the U.K. is costing our economy about £48 billion. The shortage of Mandarin speakers is part of the problem. I don't want young British people to get left behind.
"So today, I've written to a range of leading U.K. businesses urging them to get behind the British Council's Generation U.K. campaign, which aims to increase the number of U.K. people studying or undertaking internships in China to 80,000 by 2020.
"Participants in this programme will not only boost their own career prospects, but become ambassadors for U.K.-China relations on their return home."
Carma Elliot, Director of the British Council in China, said, "Generation U.K. creates incredible opportunities and access for young people in the U.K. to experience life in China's rapidly growing economy. By coming to China to work or study, U.K. students develop a global mind-set and gain international experience and skills that will enable them to thrive in a globally competitive labour market."
CBI Director-General John Cridland, said, "I was delighted to have been involved in the British Council's 'Generation UK' programme during the Prime Minister's China visit last December (2013), and the CBI is pleased to support the British Council's exciting new 'CEO Initiative', which is aimed at building the next generation of British talent through U.K.-China business partnerships. I hope that our member companies will also get involved in this worthy initiative."
Please click here to read the full press release by the U.K. government.
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