Foreign Affairs Committee visits Beijing

Date: 12th May 2006
Time: 19:30 pm
Venue: 3rd Floor, the Kerry Centre Hotel
Cost: There is no cost for this event. Invitation Only

A delegation from the Foreign Affairs Committee (FAC), will be visiting 
China on the 12th May and would very much like the opportunity to meet with Chamber 
members to identify what business representatives think about the emergence of the 
People's Republic of China (PRC) as a regional power and how this is and will 
impact the international system. 

They will be focusing their visit on the growing political and economic prominence 
of the PRC in international affairs and the roles of the United Kingdom and the 
European Union in the region. They will use the information that they collect 
during their trip to then assess British policy. 

The FAC's remit is to examine the expenditure, administration and policy of the 
Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) which includes the diplomatic service.  Other 
bodies associated with the Foreign Office (ie in receipt of public funds from the 
FCO budget), and thereby within the Committee's remit, include the British Council 
and the BBC World Service.  The FCO is also responsible for UK participation in 
international and regional multilateral organisations such as the United Nations, 
the OECD, NATO, and the European Union. The Committee is appointed by the House of 
Commons.  It comprises of 14 backbench Members of Parliament from Government and 
Opposition parties, and is calculated to reflect the membership of the House as a 
whole, with the Government holding a majority. Witnesses in a typical inquiry 
include ministers and officals from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.  It also 
hears evidence from a range of other witnesses depending on the nature of the inq 
uiry, including representatives from academic and research institutions, interest 
groups, international organisations, former diplomats and journalists. The 
Committee chooses its own inquiries.  The usual culmination of an FAC inquiry is a 
report made to the House and published in hard copy and on this website.  The 
Committee reaches conclusions and makes recommendations to the Government in its 
reports.  The Government then responds to each of the report's conclusions and 
recommendations within two months of publications.

To confirm your attendance and guarantee your place simply send an email to:
BCCC Forums' Officer, Julia Grindell: forums@pek.britcham.org by the 10th May

Registration 
Please register with us in advance. If you have registered and discover that you 
cannot make the event please give us at least 48 hours notice. Thank you.

We are looking forward to seeing then!