Boris Johnson: ‘Teach Mandarin in UK schools’

Boris Johnson at Beijing's Forbidden City. Johnson believes UK children should learn Mandarin Chinese as standard. Picture: PA

Johnson, who is studying Mandarin himself, suggested Britons should be learning as much as possible about China as the East Asian giant continues to expand its global influence.

He said children would grow up naturally knowing about China’s importance and when quizzed on whether they should learn Mandarin as standard in schools, he said: “Why not? Absolutely. My kids are learning it so why not? Definitely, definitely.”

The Mayor, who is just over halfway through a six-day trade mission in China, said he was leaning Mandarin “from the beginning” as he brandished a folder on which he had written “central kingdom”, or “China”, in the language.

On Monday he told university students in Beijing his 16-year-old daughter was learning Mandarin and was due to visit China next week.

Asked if Britain needed to improve its understanding of China, he said: “I think it’s going to happen. Human beings are very smart, we will gradually realise that this is the thing we need to know and so you’re going to find kids in our city, in London, growing up thinking yeah, China, got to know about that, and they’ll learn.”

Mr Johnson added: “I love China. I think it’s an extraordinary place and I think the more we learn about Chinese culture and the more we learn to appreciate it and to understand it, the better.”

Mr Johnson’s remarks mark a shift in thinking from a 2005 article in which he suggested teaching Mandarin in schools was not a priority.

In the Telegraph article he wrote: “We do not need to teach our babies Mandarin” and “China will not dominate the globe”.

Mr Johnson admitted he got it wrong, telling LBC 97.3 radio: “On Mandarin, yeah that was certainly wrong, my kids are learning Mandarin.”

He added: “Some of the things I wrote 10 years ago don’t look entirely accurate now and we’ve got to get with the programme.”