The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) abandoned a case against two Britons accused of spying for China, despite being informed by the UK's deputy national security adviser that Beijing's intelligence agencies 'harm the interests and security of the UK'. Three witness statements were released by Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Wednesday night in an effort to quell controversy over why the case was dropped.
Charges against Christopher Cash, a former parliamentary researcher, and Christopher Berry were dropped because prosecutors could not obtain evidence from a senior civil servant that China represented a 'threat to the national security of the UK'. The third witness statement, written in August, described China's intelligence services as 'highly capable' and conducting 'large scale espionage operations against the UK to advance the Chinese state's interests and harm the interests and security of the UK'.
The statement also noted that China state-linked hackers compromised the UK Electoral Commission and engaged in 'online reconnaissance activity' against some MPs' emails in 2021. Earlier statements were more nuanced, with a February statement saying the government was 'committed to pursuing a positive economic relationship with China', while also acknowledging China as the 'biggest state-based threat to the UK's economic security'.
The prosecution, under the 1911 Official Secrets Act, was suddenly dropped last month, prompting accusations from the Conservatives that Labour had not allowed the civil servant to supply the statements demanded by the prosecutor. Starmer denied political interference, stating at Prime Minister's Questions that 'it was absolutely not the case' and accused the Conservatives of 'slinging mud'.
Starmer argued the case collapsed because the previous Conservative government did not designate China as a threat to the UK. 'Had the Conservatives been quicker in updating our legislation – a review that started in 2015 – these individuals could have been prosecuted,' he said. The Conservatives countered that the release of witness statements was 'limited' and 'falls short of what was requested'.
