CHINA is not impressed former Liberal Democrat minister Sir Danny Alexander is to head the communications arm at the UK’s new Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB).
One insider said: “The Chinese were not happy that the UK nominated a former politician without a track record in international finance.”
Alexander, 43, lost his Inverness seat in last year’s SNP landslide, and would not appear to be obviously qualified for the Beijing role.
The AIIB advertisement said the job required a “minimum 20 to 25 years in a leadership function and position of influence in multilateral development bank(s) or equivalent”.
Before becoming an MP in 2005, Alexander was a press officer at the Cairngorms National Park, and served in a similar role for the LibDems and the Britain in Europe pressure group.
China takes a dim view of Britain dispatching ex-politicians to the east – Chris Patten became a thorn in Beijing’s side as Hong Kong’s last governor after losing his seat in 1992.
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