Spy allegations pose dilemma for UK's China policy
Spy allegations pose dilemma for UK's China policy
PA Media Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer met Chinese President Xi Jinping last month
The Chinese embassy has told the UK to "stop creating trouble", after a businessman accused of being a spy for China was banned from the country. The revelations about Yang Tengbo, who denies wrongdoing, and his links to Prince Andrew, have sparked renewed calls for the UK to designate China a threat to national security. The issue poses a dilemma for the government, which is hoping to strengthen ties with China to help boost economic growth and tackle shared issues like climate change. In the House of Commons on Monday a number of senior Conservatives called for tougher measures to protect the UK against covert Chinese influence. The previous Tory government had proposed a Foreign Influence Registration Scheme, which would require individuals and organisations acting for a foreign power to declare any political lobbying. The scheme would have two tiers, with countries specified in the "enhanced tier" requiring the registration of a wider range of activities "where this is necessary to protect the safety interests of the UK". However, its implementation has been delayed, with the measures now due to take effect from next summer.
Conservative former Home Secretary Suella Braverman claimed the scheme was "ready to go" at the time of July's general election and was among several Tory MPs to call for China to be placed in the enhanced tier. Meanwhile, former security minister Tom Tugendhat said MI5 had advised the scheme was "not worth having" if China was not in the enhanced tier. Ex-Tory leader Sir Iain Duncan Smith, who like Tugendhat has been sanctioned by China and is one of the country's most vocal critics, said there should be "no more delay" in implementing the scheme. He said Mr Yang was not a "lone wolf" but one of thousands of individuals who had penetrated UK institutions. When the party was in government, the Conservatives were divided over whether to designate China a security threat. Powers to introduce a Foreign Influence Registration Scheme were part of laws passed in July 2023 but one had not been brought in by the time of the general election a year later. Speaking on Monday, Security Minister Dan Jarvis insisted the scheme was not ready when Labour took office and the government was now planning to introduce the regulations in Parliament in the new year, ahead of it being launched in the summer. However, he refused to confirm whether China would be in the enhanced tier, only saying that decisions would be based on "robust security and intelligence analysis".
Supplied Yang Tengbo, who denies he is a spy, had forged close links with Prince Andrew
