Downing Street is facing renewed pressure to release evidence from the collapsed China spy case, after the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) denied blocking its publication. The CPS said the decision rests with the government, not prosecutors.
The case involved Christopher Cash, a former parliamentary researcher, and Christopher Berry, a teacher, who were accused of passing secrets to China. Charges were dropped last month after a witness statement by deputy national security adviser Matthew Collins was deemed insufficient to show China posed a threat at the time of the alleged offences.
No 10 sources claimed cabinet secretary Chris Wormald had discussed publishing the statement with the CPS, but prosecutors concluded it would be “inappropriate” outside a courtroom. However, a CPS spokesperson said: “The material contained in them is not ours, and it is a matter for the government, independently of the CPS, to consider whether or not to make that material public.”
The Liberal Democrats urged publication, with foreign affairs spokesperson Calum Miller stating: “If ministers have nothing to hide they have nothing to fear. Failure to come clean will just confirm people’s suspicions of a cover-up.”
Prime Minister Keir Starmer has defended Collins as a “highly respected securocrat” who supported the case, but blamed the previous Conservative government’s China policy for the collapse. The Tories have accused Labour of initiating a blame game.
