Former Conservative Party leader Sir Iain Duncan Smith (IDS) joins Let’s Talk for an exclusive interview. Sanctioned by Beijing and known for his outspoken stance on the CCP, IDS warns that China – and the totalitarian world – is winning, while both past and present UK governments remain “not awake”. He argues that successive UK governments have been weak, terrified of upsetting China, and deluded about economic benefits, allowing Beijing to gain ground.

IDS goes further, openly criticising Whitehall: The Treasury is obsessed with dealing with China, while the Foreign Office is a very good opposite indicator. “The Foreign Office say we should do this, I will go in the opposite direction because I don’t trust their judgment.” He warns that if we forget freedom is not free, its cost is paid in lives.

This interview covers some of the most sensitive topics in UK–China relations:

00:00 Why is the UK still not awake to the China threat? Is the China-growth narrative a delusion?

02:35 Did the collapse of the UK spy case happen because the government was too timid to offend China?

05:40 UK is expected to ultimately approve China’s controversial London Mega-Embassy

08:00 Keir Starmer “kisses Xi’s backside” on China policy

12:30 Why did the UK government refuse for years to recognise Jimmy Lai as a British citizen?

17:00 The emerging totalitarian axis – China, Russia, North Korea, Iran – is gaining ground

18:00 Freedom is not free. Why has the West still not properly woken up?