Oxfordshire MP Tony Baldry has urged the Government to ensure that state schools teach Mandarin Chinese - partly on the basis of his daughter's experience.

He told a special debate at Westminster on Anglo-Chinese relations that 19-year-old Honor was fortunate enough to learn the language up to GCSE and was now in the capital Beijing teaching English. However, had she gone to a state school she would not have had the chance.

The Banbury MP said she attended Malvern Girls School, one of 50 private sector schools to teach the language. It is not taught in state schools.

He rejected a tide of criticism over the Chinese human rights record to warn that different countries' views of justice were different.

He said the best way to persuade the Chinese to make changes was to engage with the country, and not "to see everything in black and white".

Mr Baldry added that while there were concerns about perceptions in China of the UK there were worries about the perceptions of the UK in China.

He said: "If we are to engage, develop and thicken a relationship with China, we need to examine how to promote and improve - really to start - the teaching of Mandarin in this country.

"We cannot expect to understand Chinese people and their culture if we are entirely dependent on them speaking English."

Mr Rammell said he would encourage the Department for Education and Skills to promote the teaching of Mandarin Chinese in state schools and expand the teaching of Chinese studies in higher education.