Overview
- Speaker Lindsay Hoyle relayed an MI5 alert saying China's Ministry of State Security is using LinkedIn profiles to contact targets at scale across the parliamentary community.
- The alert named two recruiters, Amanda Qiu of BR-YR Executive Search and Shirly Shen of Internship Union, as fronts for intelligence outreach, with similar profiles also flagged.
- MI5 described the activity as targeted and widespread, aiming to gather information and lay the groundwork for long-term relationships through professional networks and consultancies.
- Security Minister Dan Jarvis said China is seeking to recruit people with access to sensitive parliamentary and government information and announced new countermeasures, including sovereign encryption upgrades, removal of some China-made surveillance kit, and expanded state-threat response capacity.
- The Chinese embassy in London rejected the allegations as false, as UK officials referenced past warnings, including the 2022 Christine Lee case, and ongoing daily threats cited by MI5 Director General Ken McCallum.