Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer (Labour) has promised to publish government evidence from the collapsed China spy case in full. The move comes as he faces Conservative accusations of a "cover-up" over the handling of the failed prosecution.
Starmer said he intends to release witness statements prepared by senior official Matt Collins completely. Tory leader Kemi Badenoch accused the Prime Minister of being "evasive" and "too weak to stand up to China".
Collapsed prosecution details
The case involved Christopher Cash, a former parliamentary researcher, and Christopher Berry, both accused of passing secrets to China. Both men deny wrongdoing, but charges against them were dropped last month.
The Crown Prosecution Service said the case collapsed because government evidence failed to demonstrate China represented a national security threat at the time of alleged offences. Director of Public Prosecutions Stephen Parkinson had sought additional evidence from the government on China's threat level.
Conservative criticism intensifies
Badenoch accused Starmer of "obfuscation" during parliamentary exchanges. "It is simply unbelievable that he is trying to say the last government did not classify China as a threat," she said.
The Tory leader claimed Starmer's approach "stinks of a cover-up". Former security minister Tom Tugendhat questioned what political direction the current government gave officials before providing evidence.
Starmer's defence
Starmer insisted the case was based on Conservative government policy positions from 2021 and 2023. "The substantive evidence was provided in 2023 by the previous government," he told MPs.
The Prime Minister, a former director of public prosecutions, strongly denied any political interference. "Absolutely none," he responded when asked about political direction to officials.
Timeline and meetings
Number 10 confirmed Starmer was informed the case would be dropped just days before the CPS announcement. The Prime Minister said: "I'm deeply disappointed by the outcome, we wanted to see prosecutions."
Starmer confirmed his national security adviser Jonathan Powell and Foreign Office permanent secretary Sir Oliver Robbins met to discuss the trial in September. However, he insisted this did not involve discussing evidence in any way.
Sources used: "PA Media" Note: This article has been edited with the help of Artificial Intelligence.
