Rishi Sunak’s foreign investment claims include pledges and spending that would have happened anywayUK will not return to Cameron era’s close ties with China, Sunak saysIf you’ve hired Hampton Court Palace for your Global Investment Summit, and have King Charles lined up to serve drinks afterwards at Buckingham Palace, it is obligatory to publish a large number to demonstrate that the show was a complete triumph and the UK must be “one of the best places in the world to do business”.Here it is: £29.5bn of new foreign investment, a figure the government reminded us is three times the sum Boris Johnson was able to champion at his equivalent summit in 2021. One can also admire the precision: £29.5bn invites less suspicion of smoke and mirrors than a round number such as £30bn. Continue reading...