MPs are set to hold an inquiry into the collapse of a case against two men accused of spying for China, after Downing Street published key witness statements. Matt Western, Labour MP and chair of the joint committee on national security strategy, told the Commons there were 'a lot of questions yet to be asked' and announced a formal investigation.
The case against Christopher Cash, a former parliamentary researcher, and Christopher Berry, a teacher, collapsed last month after prosecutors said the government had not provided evidence that China posed a 'threat to the national security of the UK'. Both men have denied wrongdoing. Ministers published three witness statements from deputy national security adviser Matthew Collins late on Wednesday, following accusations of political interference to protect UK-China trade ties.
Cabinet Office minister Chris Ward said the decision to abandon the trial 'was taken purely by the Crown Prosecution Service' and that Collins's statements showed he 'took significant strides to articulate the threat of China in support of the prosecution'. However, Conservative MPs noted that the final statement, submitted in August, mirrored language from Labour's manifesto, raising questions about political influence.
Downing Street revealed that Prime Minister Keir Starmer was informed the case was at risk days before the CPS announced its collapse, but said it was not for him to intervene. Former shadow security minister Tom Tugendhat accused Starmer of 'hiding behind process', but the PM's spokesperson called suggestions he should have stepped in 'frankly absurd'.
Health minister Stephen Kinnock said the government was 'deeply disappointed' and that the director of public prosecutions, Stephen Parkinson, was 'the best person to explain' why the evidence did not meet the required standard. Collins's statements described Chinese intelligence agencies as conducting 'large-scale espionage operations' that threaten UK security and democratic institutions.
Conservative MP Alicia Kearns, who employed Cash as a researcher, said she would question Parkinson on why prosecutors did not proceed. 'In my view the CPS should have proceeded with this,' she told BBC Radio 4. Parkinson is expected to face further scrutiny from MPs in the coming days.
