With “close friends” of Tony Blair laying it on thick for Chuka over the weekend, interesting that the Shadow Business Secretary is off on a junket to China tomorrow organised by a group with particularly close links to the former PM. Chuka’s four day trip comes courtesy of Chinese for Labour (CfL), a well-funded organisation that seeks to recruit Chinese Britons to the party, promises access to Labour MPs and offers financial assistance to potential candidates. Manchurian, presumably.

CfL are chaired by Sonny Leong, a publisher who seems to spend his time spinning for the communist Chinese government when he is not personally donating tens of thousands of pounds to the Labour Party. CfL’s patrons include Cherie Blair, David Miliband and former Blair fixer Ian McCartney. On its executive committee sits Lady Katy Tse Blair (right), wife of Tony’s brother Bill. CfL has organised recent trips to China for Blairite Shadow Cabinet ministers Liam Byrne and Douglas Alexander. Worth noting that Blair has earned hundreds of thousands of pounds from his links to the country. He clearly has a soft spot for the Chinese…