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Questions are being raised on the collapse of Case against two people on charges of espionage For BeijingThe former head of the Secret Intelligence Service said he was unsure why the prosecution was dropped.
it comes in the middle It is alleged that the Prime Minister’s team had access to several documents that proved that China was a threat to national security. But it was reportedly decided not to hand him over to the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) before the case was closed.
and on the eve of Sir Keir Starmer’s visit to Egypt where he will join Middle East Peace Summit chaired by Donald TrumpThe White House has reportedly warned that failure to prosecute two alleged Chinese spies risks weakening the special relationship – and intelligence sharing between Britain and the US.
Speaking about the collapse of the trial, Sir John Sowers told Times Radio: “I don’t think it has anything to do with intelligence. I think these two people accused of spying on Parliament were low-level journalists in Parliament. If the allegations are true, then what they were doing was certainly illegal.
“And frankly, I’m a little confused and unsure as to why the prosecution was dropped. Of course, China poses an intelligence threat, the UK poses a subversion threat, as well as an economic partner.
“If these activities were being carried out inside Parliament being paid for by agents of a foreign power, even if that foreign power was a friend of the UK, that would be an illegal activity. So I’m not sure why the prosecution was dropped.”
The former MI6 chief said, “I think the government was slow to take a clear stance on this. We heard from Yvette Cooper at the end of last week. But I think Americans will be equally puzzled as to why the prosecution was dropped when the case seemed quite clear.”
It comes after two former top civil servants questioned the Prime Minister’s explanation for dropping the prosecution of former parliamentary researcher Christopher Cash, 30, and teacher Christopher Berry, 33.
The Prime Minister has said that the previous Conservative administration did not designate China as a national security threat, so his Government Could not provide evidence to that effect, which the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Stephen Parkinson said was necessary to meet the threshold for prosecution.
The Prime Minister’s current national security adviser, Jonathan Powell’s predecessor, Lord Mark Sedwill, expressed confusion about why the trial failed as Beijing was “certainly” a threat to Britain, while former Cabinet Secretary Lord Simon Case said intelligence chiefs had warned publicly about the threat from China for years.
Former Attorney General Dominic Grieve on Friday dismissed the government’s claims as “outlandish” Independent: “I cannot understand why the Prime Minister was not in a position to ask the Cabinet Office to provide evidence.”
Mr Cash and Mr Berry were charged by the CPS in April last year with spying under the Official Secrets Act 1911, when they were accused of collecting and communicating information that could be “useful to the enemy”. Both denied the allegations.
White House sources told many times Mr Trump is concerned about Britain’s credibility after the charges were dropped, with a senior official saying: “The United States has been warning allies about the Chinese threat to our joint national security since President Trump first came to office in 2017.
“The U.S. government exercises extreme caution in sharing information with foreign governments subject to adverse pressure and influence.
“We are particularly cautious in jurisdictions where our adversaries can act with impunity.”
The collapse of the case has raised questions about Britain’s willingness to confront China as Sir Keir’s government seeks closer ties with the country.
The Tories have accused the government of “political interference” in the trial, with shadow Foreign Secretary Dame Priti Patel urging Attorney General Lord Harmer to “come to Parliament and give an account of what has happened”.
sunday times Last week reports said that at a meeting last month, Sir Keir Starmer’s national security adviser Jonathan Powell revealed that the government’s evidence would be based on the national security strategy, which was published in June and did not refer to Beijing as an “enemy”.
But Cabinet minister Bridget Phillipson said Mr Powell played no role in thwarting the prosecution of two alleged Chinese spies and he has the prime minister’s full confidence.