The recent heatwaves revealed how ill-prepared Britain remains for a hotter future – and how unequal the ability to cope with it has become, write ROX MIDDLETON, LIAM SHAW and MIRIAM GAUNTLETT
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Paul White: friend of People’s Republic
GLYN ROBERTS remembers the former miner whose socialist politics led him to China where he served the people as a celebrated and decorated journalist and translator
Having emigrated to China in 1984, Paul White (left) had his long service to publishing recognised in 2007 with the Friendship Award, the highest honour given to a foreigner for contributing to the nation's development
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PAUL WHITE who has died at the age of 77, was a widely travelled British journalist, translator and former miner, who spent the last 36 years of his life in Beijing.
For many years, he wrote the China Diary column for this newspaper. Morning Star editor Ben Chacko said: “His China Diary was unique — a brisk and breezy overview of Chinese events that provided a window into the country. We’ll miss it.”
A hard worker and keen socialist, Paul had a passion for studying languages and he learnt several, including Mandarin, Korean and Old English. He enjoyed folk singing, rambling and the Japanese martial art of Aikido, in which he achieved a black belt in 2011 at the age of 68.
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