Chinese ‘spy’ linked to Prince Andrew is ‘tip of the iceberg’
LONDON — The British government is facing fresh pressure over China after an alleged spy with close links to Prince Andrew was barred from returning to the U.K.
Court documents released last week revealed that a 50-year-old Chinese national — described as a “close confidant” of King Charles III’s brother — had been banned from the U.K. on national security grounds after cultivating close links with British power players.
The documents state that the man, referred to only as H6 and alleged to have ties to China’s overseas influence-focused United Front Work Department (UFWD), was invited to Andrew’s 2020 birthday party and given permission to represent the royal in business deals.
The Sunday Times reported this weekend that H6 even met prime ministers David Cameron and Theresa May during his time as an associate of Andrew. Andrew said in a statement that he had severed all ties with the man.
Beyond questions about the royal’s judgment, hawkish Conservative MPs are now pressing the British government to get tough on Chinese influence. Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Monday insisted his administration — seeking a reset of the U.K.’s ties with China — remains “concerned about the challenge that China poses.”
Tory MP and former Security Minister Tom Tugendhat told POLITICO London Playbook that the alleged Prince Andrew link is “just the tip of the iceberg” and that the Chinese state is using the UFWD to “conduct massive operations targeting not just the government and the royal family, but our universities, businesses and institutions too.”
Fellow Conservative China hawk Iain Duncan Smith echoed that line, and warned of extensive Chinese influence in the U.K. H6 was barred from the U.K. on the orders of Conservative then-Home Secretary Suella Braverman, and he lost his challenge to that decision.
“The reality is that there are many, many more involved in exactly this kind of espionage that’s taking place,” Duncan Smith told Radio 4 Monday. “The reality for us is very simple — China is a very clear threat.”
Duncan Smith urged the U.K. to get on with implementing its long-delayed Foreign Influence Registration Scheme, which was repeatedly promised by Conservative governments and then paused when Labour came into power this summer. The new government is blaming poor administration of the scheme by the Tories for the hold-up.
But Duncan Smith insisted there was “nothing wrong” with FIRS and “nobody with half a brain will believe” government claims that it is not ready to deploy the scheme, which would require state agents to register their activity or face prosecution.
“The reality is, it’s an excuse not to upset China. We are now seen … by our Five Eyes security partners, as the soft underbelly of that alliance and that’s a real worry,” Duncan Smith argued.
That charge was rejected by Starmer in a press conference Monday. Speaking on a trip to Norway, the British Prime Minister refused to get into any conversations with Buckingham Palace, the royal household, about the affair.
“But of course, we are concerned about the challenge that China poses,” said Starmer, who recently met face-to-face with its premier Xi Jinping.
He added: “Our approach is one of engagement: of cooperating where we need to cooperate, particularly, for example, on issues like climate change.
“To challenge, where we must and where we should, particularly on issues like human rights. And to compete when it comes to trade. So that’s the strategic approach that we’ve set out as a U.K. government.”
On the status of the FIRS scheme, Starmer insisted his administration had been “working on it from day one in government,” and promised “an update coming shortly.”
MPs from Nigel Farage’s Reform UK party plan to use parliamentary privilege Monday to sidestep legal restrictions on naming the alleged agent, despite a warning from ministers to tread carefully.
Duncan Smith, the Conservative MP, told Playbook: “Project Kowtow doesn’t work. This whole sort of thing ‘mustn’t upset China, we want to get growth.’
“Well, they’re not going give the British government growth, they’re just going to sell their product to us.”
Sam Blewett contributed reporting. This story has been updated with further reporting.
