The government has published witness statements in the now-collapsed case against two men accused of spying for China, following an extraordinary row over the saga.
Three statements provided by deputy national security adviser Matt Collins as part of the Crown Prosecution Service’s case, which repeatedly describe China as a threat, were published as part of an attempt to draw a line under growing questions about the government’s evidence.
It came after the CPS dropped the case deeming the evidence did not show China was a threat to national security.
But the evidence also reveals extraordinary new details about the allegations – including that one alleged China spy told another “you’re in spy territory now”. Mr Collins also alleges in his statement that information was leaked to China about the Tory leadership race.
‘You’re in spy territory now’
One witness statement, shared with the CPS in 2023, alleges that Beijing recruited Christopher Berry, one of the alleged spies, to use Christopher Cash as a “sub-source with access to the China Research group (CRG), the Parliamentary estate and to at least two senior Members of Parliament”. Both Mr Cash and Mr Berry have denied all wrongdoing.
The evidence also identifies a mysterious figure called ‘Alex’, who was said to be Mr Berry’s handler. The file says he was identified by the Metropolitan Police’s SO15 counter-terrorism unit, and alleged to be an agent of the Chinese state.
Mr Collins’ statement alleges Mr Berry was tasked by ‘Alex’ to “obtain information and analysis about the inner workings of the British political system”.
Some of the information passed by Mr Cash to Mr Berry and then to “Alex” was confirmed to also be in the possession of a senior CCP leader, the witness statement says.
And in July 2022, the witness statement accuses Mr Berry of meeting with a senior CCP leader in Hangzhou, Zhejiang. Mr Cash was allegedly made aware of the meeting via voice note, responding: “You’re in spy territory now”.
Tory leadership race
The witness statements also claim that Mr Cash passed on information about the Tory leadership race – held between July and September 2022 – to Mr Berry, telling him that Tory MP Tom Tugendhat, who was at that time not a minister, would likely to obtain a Cabinet position from Rishi Sunak.
Mr Berry is then accused of passing this information onto ‘Alex’, in which he indicated this position for Mr Tugendhat would be in exchange for his support on foreign policy matters.
Mr Cash is said to have told Mr Berry that this information was “very off the record” and that he definitely should not tell his “Zhejiang interlocutor”.
Mr Berry indicated that Alex and a senior CCP leader “showed considerable interest in how any appointment within the UK political landscape would change the UK government’s policy on China”, Mr Collins said.
“Their interest was so much so that the senior CCP leader was asking specific questions about each MP within the Conservative leadership election one by one”.
He also said information about a possible promotion for Mr Tugendhat to a “department that has a significant role in shaping the UK’s China Policy would have allowed China to ascertain the possible direction of the UK government, particularly on China-related issues”.
The witness statements also claim that Mr Cash told Mr Berry that Tory MP Jeremy Hunt was likely to pull out of the Conservative leadership race and back Mr Tugendhat – something Mr Cash told Mr Berry was “v v confidential”, adding: “Defo don’t share with your new employer”. The information was subsequently passed to ‘Alex’ by Mr Berry, the witness statement says.
On one occasion, Mr Berry was allegedly able to provide information to “Alex” within 13 hours of being contacted, which Mr Collins said “indicates to me that it may have been used to inform real-term decision-making.”
China’s treatment of Uyghur Muslims
Mr Collins’ witness statement also alleges that Mr Berry told ‘Alex’ that James Cleverly, the then foreign secretary, did not think sanctions were an effective tool when it came to the import of products from Xinjiang, where China has been accused of committing crimes against humanity against the Uyghur population.
The witness statement also alleges that Mr Berry passed a tasking from Alex to Mr Cash, offering Mr Cash cash payment if he could respond quickly.
Mr Cash is said to have told Mr Berry that a ban on the imports of products from Xinjiang would not likely come into force until well into 2023, as well as allegedly saying the government was “not planning to take measures which could harm the prospect of doing business with China”, Mr Collins said.
In a statement, Mr Cash said he had been out in an “impossible position”.
He said: “I have not had the daylight of a public trial to show my innocence, and I should not have to take part in a trial by media. The statements that have been made public are completely devoid of the context that would have been given at trial.
“Furthermore, the assessments of the information shared would have been subject to a root and branch challenge. Those assessments would not have withstood the scrutiny of a public trial.”
