Chairperson, China is an incredible country with a rich history and much can be learned from it but sometimes when we learn we need to learn from the mistakes that other people make.

Over the past ten years, China has made enormous strides in the fight against poverty and yet when one walks the streets or catches a train through the villages, there is still plenty of poverty to be seen. The presence of security in the form of police and military personnel was overwhelming. As was the presence of facial recognition close set television cameras and a near complete blockade of internet access and then as a fact that we only travelled on strictly controlled routes and with dedicated guides to keep us on the street and narrow.

There was a distinctive divide between the elite ruling class and the majority of Chinese citizens. The elite drive around in all the trappings of the western civilisation, BMWs and Maseratis and purchase high earned