On Tuesday, November 18th, MI5, the British intelligence agency, issued a spy alert to members of the House of Commons and the House of Lords, warning that two individuals associated with the Chinese Communist Party’s intelligence agencies were actively recruiting lawmakers.
MI5 stated that these two individuals were operating as recruiters on LinkedIn, aiming to obtain “non-public internal information,” with a focus on economists, think tank staff, and civil servants to make contacts with political figures.
In the morning of Tuesday, MI5 sent the warning to the Speaker of the House of Commons, Lindsay Hoyle, and the Speaker of the House of Lords, Lord McFall. The two Speakers subsequently conveyed the warning to the lawmakers along with an email.
Sir Lindsay Hoyle, in his letter to the lawmakers, expressed that the Chinese government was “working tirelessly” to “interfere in our proceedings and influence parliamentary activities.”
He pointed out that the Chinese Ministry of State Security was “actively reaching out to individuals in our (lawmakers’) communities” and that they aimed to “use professional social networking sites, recruitment agents, and consultants representing them to collect information and lay the groundwork for long-term relationships.”
In an email to the members of the House of Lords, Lord McFall indicated that the two recruiters were associated with the Chinese Ministry of State Security (MSS).
The spy activities described in the MI5 alert also included providing lawmakers with fully funded trips to China and paying information fees in cash or cryptocurrency.
Dan Jarvis, the Director-General of MI5, made a statement in the House of Commons at noon, confirming the issuance of the alert. He informed the lawmakers that “this activity involves foreign powers secretly and deliberately interfering in British sovereign affairs, which this government will not tolerate.”
Jarvis stated that the MI5 alert indicated that the spy operation was “conducted by a group of Chinese intelligence operatives who often disguise themselves through cover companies or external recruitment agencies.”
Jarvis announced a series of measures to counter the spy threat to the UK, including allocating £170 million to upgrade government encryption technology and enhancing prevention against Chinese cybercrimes and attempts to influence UK university research.
The Director-General mentioned that “all necessary measures” would be taken for prevention, including updating and strengthening national security powers.
He said that rules would be tightened to combat secret funding sources for political parties while giving the Electoral Commission greater enforcement powers.
Furthermore, all political parties and candidates participating in the next year’s elections for the Scottish Parliament, Welsh Parliament, and local councils in England will receive security briefings.
Jarvis emphasized that although China is the UK’s third-largest trading partner, the UK will use sanctions “when necessary.”
Previously, MI5 also warned that Chinese spies were trying to recruit British individuals working in sensitive areas through LinkedIn to gather intelligence. Female spies usually disguised themselves as recruitment consultants, using potential job opportunities as bait, and had contact with at least 10,000 British individuals.
Former Conservative Party leader Sir Iain Duncan Smith stated that the latest MI5 alert confirmed Beijing’s “aggressive stance” and utterly debunked the ridiculous claims that China posed no threat to UK national security.
He told BBC News, “We must be more vigilant.”
“Why can’t the government face up to the nature of China (the CCP), not confront the ongoing threat it poses to UK national security?” Smith said, “This is evident to everyone in the public.”