英商务大臣奥尼尔 或因核电项目波折辞职

 　　Jim O’Neill, the Treasury¹ minister and former Goldman Sachs chief economist², could quit the government over Theresa May’s new approach to China exposed by her handling of plans for a new Hinkley Point nuclear plant.

　　英国首相特里萨?梅(Theresa May)在欣克利角(Hinkley Point)核电站项目上暴露出的对华新策略，可能让英国财政部商务大臣、高盛(Goldman Sachs)前首席经济学家吉姆?奥尼尔(Jim O'Neill)提出辞职。

　　Lord O’Neill was a star signing brought into the Treasury by George Osborne to build relations with China and oversee³ new infrastructure⁴. He coined the phrase “Brics” in 2001 to describe the world’s leading emerging economies, Brazil, Russia, India and China.

　　奥尼尔勋爵是受乔治?奥斯本(George Osborne)延揽进入英国财政部、负责打造中英关系和主管新基础设施建设的明星人物。他在2001年创造了“金砖国家”(Brics)一词，用于描述全球的主要新兴经济体：巴西、俄罗斯、印度和中国。

　　In a sign of the remaining tensions in Mrs May’s new ministerial team and concerns in Beijing that it may no longer be welcome to invest in British nuclear power plants, Lord O’Neill has told friends he will leave the government in September unless Mrs May can explain why she wants him to stay on.

　　奥尼尔向朋友们表示，除非梅能够解释为何想让他留下来，否则他会在9月辞职。这表明梅的新内阁团队依然没有磨合好，同时也表明北京方面担心，英国可能不再欢迎中方投资英国核电站。

　　“He’s considering why he has been asked to stay,” said one friend, who said the minister was baffled about the government’s change of tack⁵ on China.

　　一位朋友表示：“他正在思考自己为何被要求留任。”这位朋友表示，奥尼尔对新政府改变对华方针感到困惑。

　　Mrs May did not forewarn Lord O’Neill that she intended to put the ￡18bn project on hold; Beijing plans to invest ￡6bn in the scheme and sees it as a bridgehead to building its own nuclear power station in Britain.

　　梅没有事先知会奥尼尔，她打算搁置这个180亿英镑的项目。中国计划在该项目中投资60亿英镑，并将其视为在英国建设自主设计核电站的桥头堡。

　　Lord O’Neill considered quitting last week, but did not want to undermine another of his projects: persuading world leaders at a G20 summit early next month to act on his report on tackling drug resistant⁶ “superbugs”.

　　奥尼尔上周就考虑辞职，但不想破坏自己的另一个计划，即在下月初20国集团(G20)峰会上劝说全球领导人，根据他有关处理耐药性“超级细菌”的报告采取行动。

　　The minister was given free rein⁷ by Mr Osborne to court Chinese investment and told the Financial Times in Beijing last year that Britain had to “get over one of its perpetual problems of being a fair weather friend”.

　　此前奥斯本放手让奥尼尔吸引中国投资，奥尼尔去年在北京向英国《金融时报》表示，英国必须“解决长期以来只能同甘不能共苦的问题”。

　　The son of a Manchester postman, he also led the development of Mr Osborne’s “Northern Powerhouse” project, including selling schemes in the north to Chinese investors⁸.

　　奥尼尔是曼彻斯特一名邮递员之子，他还负责推进奥斯本的“北方经济引擎”(northern powerhouse)计划，其中包括向中国投资者出售北部项目。

　　But Mrs May has criticised the Northern Powerhouse scheme for focusing regional policy too heavily on one region; Lord O’Neill believes that Chinese investors are now confused about government policy.

　　但梅批评了“北方经济引擎”项目，认为政府的地区政策过于注重单个地区。奥尼尔相信，中国投资者现在肯定对英国政府的政策感到困惑。

　　The new prime minister announced last week that she wanted more time to assess the Hinkley Point project, catching⁹ by surprise Beijing and the French power utility EDF, which wants to build the new power station.

　　梅上周宣布，她需要更多时间来评估欣克利角项目。这让北京方面和希望承建这座新核电站的法国电力集团(EDF)感到意外。

　　Two Chinese companies, CGN and CNNC, have agreed jointly¹¹ to finance just over a third of the project.

　　中国核工业集团公司(CNNC)和中国广核集团(CGN)同意联手为项目提供略多于三分之一的融资。

　　The real goal for Beijing in Britain is not so much Hinkley but the opportunity to build and finance another nuclear power station of its own design at another of EDF’s sites in Bradwell, Essex.

　　中方在英国的真正目标不是欣克利角，而是希望有机会在埃塞克斯郡(Essex)的布拉德韦尔(Bradwell)运用自己的设计建造另一个核电站并提供融资。布拉德韦尔也是法国电力集团的核电项目。

　　“This is all about Bradwell,” said one minister. “I’m sure Theresa would be happy to take ￡6bn off the Chinese for Hinkley but it’s not clear whether she is happy about the next stage.”

　　一位部长表示：“这完全与布拉德韦尔有关。我确信梅会很高兴在欣克利角让中方出60亿英镑，但不清楚她是否乐于见到下一阶段。”

　　Mrs May’s aides insist the delay in approving Hinkley Point was “simply about this deal” and that if there were to be any different approach to China that would be a matter for the future.

　　梅的助手们坚称，延迟批准欣克利角项目“仅针对该交易”，如果对华策略有所改变，那也是将来的事情。

　　But the statement issued by the government explaining the delay said that ministers wanted to examine “the component¹² parts” of the deal — a form of words understood in Whitehall to refer to Chinese involvement.

　　但英国政府在解释延迟批准的声明中表示，部长们希望仔细研究该协议的“组成部分”——在白厅这种措辞被理解为指中国的参与。

　　Mr Osborne promised Beijing “progressive entry” into the British nuclear market, but Mrs May’s joint¹⁰ chief of staff Nick Timothy wrote last year that this could put China in a position to turn off the UK’s power at will.

　　奥斯本承诺过让中国“逐步进入”英国核能市场，但梅的联席幕僚长尼克?蒂莫西(Nick Timothy)曾在去年写道，这样一来中国将能够随心所欲地切断英国电力供应。

 

1 treasury   

n.宝库；国库，金库；文库

参考例句：

• The Treasury was opposed in principle to the proposals.财政部原则上反对这些提案。
• This book is a treasury of useful information.这本书是有价值的信息宝库。

2 economist   

n.经济学家，经济专家，节俭的人

参考例句：

• He cast a professional economist's eyes on the problem.他以经济学行家的眼光审视这个问题。
• He's an economist who thinks he knows all the answers.他是个经济学家，自以为什么都懂。

3 oversee   

vt.监督，管理

参考例句：

• Soldiers oversee the food handouts.士兵们看管着救济食品。
• Use a surveyor or architect to oversee and inspect the different stages of the work.请一位房产检视员或建筑师来监督并检查不同阶段的工作。

4 infrastructure   

n.下部构造，下部组织，基础结构，基础设施

参考例句：

• We should step up the development of infrastructure for research.加强科学基础设施建设。
• We should strengthen cultural infrastructure and boost various types of popular culture.加强文化基础设施建设，发展各类群众文化。

5 tack   

n.大头钉；假缝，粗缝

参考例句：

• He is hammering a tack into the wall to hang a picture.他正往墙上钉一枚平头钉用来挂画。
• We are going to tack the map on the wall.我们打算把这张地图钉在墙上。

6 resistant   

adj.(to)抵抗的，有抵抗力的

参考例句：

• Many pests are resistant to the insecticide.许多害虫对这种杀虫剂有抵抗力。
• They imposed their government by force on the resistant population.他们以武力把自己的统治强加在持反抗态度的人民头上。

7 rein   

n.疆绳，统治，支配；vt.以僵绳控制，统治

参考例句：

• The horse answered to the slightest pull on the rein.只要缰绳轻轻一拉,马就作出反应。
• He never drew rein for a moment till he reached the river.他一刻不停地一直跑到河边。

8 investors   

n.投资者，出资者( investor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• a con man who bilked investors out of millions of dollars 诈取投资者几百万元的骗子
• a cash bonanza for investors 投资者的赚钱机会

9 catching   

adj.易传染的，有魅力的，迷人的，接住

参考例句：

• There are those who think eczema is catching.有人就是认为湿疹会传染。
• Enthusiasm is very catching.热情非常富有感染力。

10 joint   

adj.联合的，共同的；n.关节，接合处；v.连接，贴合

参考例句：

• I had a bad fall,which put my shoulder out of joint.我重重地摔了一跤，肩膀脫臼了。
• We wrote a letter in joint names.我们联名写了封信。

11 jointly   

ad.联合地，共同地

参考例句：

• Tenants are jointly and severally liable for payment of the rent. 租金由承租人共同且分别承担。
• She owns the house jointly with her husband. 她和丈夫共同拥有这所房子。

12 component   

n.组成部分，成分，元件；adj.组成的，合成的

参考例句：

• Each component is carefully checked before assembly.每个零件在装配前都经过仔细检查。
• Blade and handle are the component parts of a knife.刀身和刀柄是一把刀的组成部分。