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AbstractSinoscepticism is on the rise in British politics. Why is this? And what are the implications? This article shows that Sinoscepticism is not solely a result of the whims of MPs, but also stems from deep‐rooted tensions surrounding Britain's position in global order. Specifically, the British state finds itself on the horns of a dilemma: accept the status quo of staying economically open to China, but face staunch criticism and reprisals both internationally and domestically; or become more hawkish in relations, but risk worsening Britain's imbalanced and underperforming economy. Considering the Conservative Party's longstanding commitment to both the 'special relationship' with the US and to business and finance, this predicament is likely to provoke the party. The dilemma is seemingly about relations with one country, but, like Euroscepticism, it has the potential to become a stand‐in for debates over what sort of country the UK should be.

Following widespread use in political marketing and polling, focus groups are slowly gaining recognition as a useful and legitimate method in political science. Focus groups can, however, be far more than just a secondary qualitative method to primary quantitative public opinion research: they can be used to study the micro-level process of social construction. The process in which key sub-groups collectively contest and justify the actions of elite political actors via shared values is one way to study how legitimacy is conferred. This article therefore argues that focus groups can be particularly useful for research that examines everyday narratives in world politics.

Research Highlights and Abstract Examines how fiscal deficit reduction has been legitimated in the United Kingdom Uses focus groups with taxpayers in order to explore how members of the public make sense of the fairness of austerity measures Highlights how participants consistently identified themselves as hardworking taxpayers who face a high tax burden due to redistribution to undeserving poor and rich others Argues that this leads to a 'legitimacy gap' in state redistribution that austerity measures can be seen to close Following the 2008 financial crisis, fiscal deficit reduction has become the name of the game for many Western states. This article uses focus group data to explore the legitimation of austerity in the United Kingdom. It is argued that fiscal consolidation speaks to real concerns citizens have over unfair redistribution to supposed 'undeserving' groups. The undeserving rich and poor are stigmatised during times of austerity since they are assumed to take more than they give from the public purse—leaving taxpayers, the assumption goes, to pick up the bill. By speaking to this legitimacy gap between prudent normative expectations and the lived experiences of state profligacy, fiscal consolidation can appear to speak to the interests of 'the taxpayer'—a group conceptualised as a sense of group position that arises from collective sense-making rather than a pre-given constituency.