A British newspaper says UK lawmakers want to phase out Chinese state-sponsored language schools by bringing in Mandarin teachers from Taiwan.
Rising tensions between the Western countries and China have put Confucius Institutes — Mandarin schools run by a Chinese foundation — under increasing scrutiny. Critics say the schools are too closely tied to authorities in Beijing, and that they have a chilling effect on free speech in universities.
The UK has 30 Confucius Institutes. And according to a group set up by British lawmakers, most of the UK government’s funding for Mandarin teaching goes through them.
On Sunday, the Observer newspaper reported that British lawmakers want to redirect some of the funding into programs that use Taiwanese teachers.
The report comes at a period of tension between the United Kingdom and China. In 2015, former British Chancellor George Osborne declared the start of a “golden decade” of China-UK ties. But since then, relations have rapidly deteriorated, and reports suggest the new prime minister, Liz Truss, will label China an “acute threat” to British security — the same category as Russia.