Chinese state visit: President Xi Jinping's first day in UK

Summary

Chinese President Xi Jinping and his wife, Peng Liyuan, formally begin a four-day state visit to the UK
They took part in a procession down the Mall to Buckingham Palace
Thousands of supporters greeted him, but so too did protesters angry at China's human rights record
President Xi addressed MPs and peers in Parliament's Royal Gallery
A State Banquet will be held on Tuesday evening at Buckingham Palace

Live Reporting

Nick Eardley, Mario Cacciottolo and Victoria King

On the Mallpublished at 09:50 British Summer Time 20 October 2015
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'Panting puppy'published at 09:47
Image source, Reuters
James McGregor, chairman of consultancy group APCO Worldwide's Chinese operations, warns that Britain would be seen as being "on a leash" by the Chinese leadership.
He told the Today programme: "This is incredible what's going on right now, with the British government saying 'we want to be your best friend, we want to be your best friend, we'll do anything for it.'
Quote Message
Well, if you act like a panting puppy, the object of your attention is going to think they have got you on a leash. China does not respect people that suck up to him. I think England is going to rue the day they did this."
Pro-China support on the Mallpublished at 09:44
Image source, Reuters
Image source, Reuters
Image source, Reuters
Newspaper viewpublished at 09:36 British Summer Time 20 October 2015
Tuesday's Daily Mirror is pretty clear about what it wants to see from the prime minister during the Chinese visit.
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Balancing actpublished at 09:36
Image source, AFP
More from Philip Hammond on steel. He told the Today programme: "If we had steel prices in the UK that were far out of line with the steel prices in other countries, our downstream industries would not be able to be competitive with the products they produce."
He continued:
Quote Message
So, we have got to get the balance right. Trying to protect our steel industry in a sensible way, which we are doing, but recognising that we are operating in a global economy and we can't simply build a wall around the UK."
Steel 'dumping'published at 09:33
The state visit coincides with a time of crisis in the UK steel industry, with some pointing fingers of blame at China. British politicians are facing pressure to raise concerns about the "dumping" of cheap steel with the Chinese leader.
Philip Hammond said "substantial tariffs" had been imposed on Chinese steel imports but insisted on the Today programme earlier that it was a matter of balancing the protection of the UK's steel industry with working in a global economy.
Vital source of fundspublished at 09:25 British Summer Time 20 October 2015
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'Eyes wide open'published at 09:20
Image source, AP
Not everyone is entirely comfortable with the UK's ever closer ties with its Far Eastern friend. China's human rights record is just one issue about which British politicians have been quizzed.
Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond - pictured with President Xi shortly after his arrival on Monday - says Britain will not be naive in its dealings with China.
He told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "It's very much in our national interest to engage with China but we do so with our eyes wide open.
"I think we are developing a mature relationship with the Chinese. They know that we are looking not just to China but to many other countries for infrastructure investment in the UK."
What's in a name?published at 09:14
Ever wondered how to pronounce the name of China's most powerful couple?
Xi Jinping is pronounced SHEE jin PING - "sh" as in ship, "j" as in Jack.
Peng Liyuan is pronounced PUNG lee yue-AN - "u" as in bun, "ue" as in French vu.
So now you can impress your Chinese friends.
'Globetrotting folksinger'published at 09:11
Image source, AFP
The Chinese President's wife Peng Liyuan is a woman of note in her own right, a successful singer who was famed forsinging syrupy sweet folk tunes.
To give you a bit of context, she's been compared overseas to former French first lady Carla Bruni, a renowned chanteuse herself.
The Guardian's profile of Peng Liyuan describes her as a "globetrotting folksinger who has graced stages from New York to Vienna"., external
Welcome partypublished at 09:10 British Summer Time 20 October 2015
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Busy itinerarypublished at 09:06
Image source, PA
You’ll find more about Mr Xi’s visit in this story on the BBC News website, including a timeline of the highlights of what’s planned during his four-day trip. He has plenty of events in the diary in London, and will eventually visit Manchester as well.
He's being accompanied by his wife Peng Liyuan. More on her shortly.
Previous state visitspublished at 09:00
Image source, Gett
Here’s a bit of background to set the scene - China’s last state visit was by President Hu Jintao in 2005, who's seen in the image above.
The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh paid a state visit to China themselves in 1986. And the Duke of Cambridge paid an official visit to China in March 2015, on behalf of the government.
Hello and welcomepublished at 08:44
Welcome to this live page, covering the visit of Chinese President Xi Jinping to the UK. Stay with us for the latest news, analysis and images as the day unfolds, with plenty of pomp and a fair bit of ceremony expected.