Chinese spy allegations involving Prince Andrew are ‘tip of the iceberg’, senior MPs warn

Senior MPs have warned that revelations of an alleged Chinese spy with links to the highest levels of British public life including the Duke of York are the “tip of the iceberg” of Beijing’s meddling.

Tom Tugendhat, the Tory former security minister, said the Chinese Communist Party is “seeking to exert influence” in the UK as he urged the Government to finally introduce a register of hostile state agents.

Sir Iain Duncan Smith, the former leader of the Conservative Party who has been sanctioned by Beijing, said that China represented a “very clear threat”.

Last week, it emerged the Duke formed a close business relationship with an alleged Chinese spy banned from the UK on national security grounds.

His office said on Friday that the Duke had “ceased all contact with the individual after concerns were raised”. It added he had “met the individual through official channels with nothing of a sensitive nature ever discussed”.

The businessman in question is currently the subject of a court anonymity order and is referred to only as H6.

As well as his links to the Duke, the suspected agent also met former prime ministers Lord Cameron and Baroness May on separate occasions.

Asked how concerned he was that an alleged spy had been able to get close to a member of the royal family, Mr Tugendhat told BBC Breakfast: “Well, I have to say this is really indicative of exactly what the United Front Work Department, what the Chinese Communist Party is trying to do.

“They are trying to exert influence, they are trying to change the policies of the United Kingdom and other countries around the world and they are trying to influence individuals, not just in the royal family but in academia, in politics, in business and even sometimes in journalism.”

Threat to national security

Mr Tugendhat brought forward the foreign influence registration scheme when he was in office, which would compel anyone acting for a foreign power to declare political influencing activity and criminalise those who fail to do so.

The roll out of the scheme has been delayed since Labour took power and it is currently unclear when it will be introduced.

Mr Tugendhat urged the Government to implement the scheme as soon as possible as he warned doing anything else “would frankly be negligent”.

Asked how worried he was about the alleged spy meeting Lord Cameron and Baroness May, seemingly when the Tories were in power, Mr Tugendhat said: “I am sure it is happening now.

“I am absolutely certain that there are members of the United Front Work Department who are active right now in attempting to influence journalism, academics, politics and the whole lot.

“This is really the tip of the iceberg. The story I can understand why it has been about Prince Andrew but it is not really about Prince Andrew.

“It is about the way the Chinese Communist Party is seeking to exert influence here in the United Kingdom.”

Sir Iain said he believed there are “many, many more” people like H6 operating in the UK.

Sir Iain told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “We’re dealing with the tip of the iceberg. The fact is there are many more like him [H6] in the UK. There are many more doing the job that he’s been doing, and the fact he was leaving the UK tells you that he realised at some point he was going to get caught.

“The reality is that there are many, many more involved in exactly this kind of espionage that’s taking place. The reality for us is very simple – China is a very clear threat.”