"The director of public prosecutions has said the China spy case collapsed because a top national security official could not say the country had been classed as an "enemy" when the Conservatives were in power. In a letter to MPs, Stephen Parkinson said the unwillingness of Deputy National Security Adviser Matt Collins to say that China had been an active threat to national security between 2021 and 2023 was "fatal to the case"."
"The men were first arrested in March 2023 on suspicion of offences under the Official Secrets Act - and if the case were to go before a jury, the prosecution would have to prove that the defendants had carried out activity "prejudicial to the safety or interests of the State". Secondly, a jury would also have to be sure that the UK government had considered between 2021 and 2023 - when the alleged offending occurred"
Stephen Parkinson, head of the Crown Prosecution Service, attributed the collapse of the China spy case to a senior official’s refusal to state that China had been classed as an active threat between 2021 and 2023. Two men, Christopher Cash and Christopher Berry, were arrested in March 2023 and charged under the Official Secrets Act in April 2024 over allegations of passing information to a Chinese intelligence agent. The CPS withdrew the case and the men were cleared in September. Parkinson submitted a detailed letter to the national security strategy committee and will appear before MPs as witnesses prepare to challenge parts of his written evidence.
Read at www.bbc.com
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