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MI5 Warns of Daily China Threat as MPs Probe Collapse of UK Spy Case

Prosecutors dropped charges after failing to secure evidence that China qualified as a national‑security threat at the time, and the director of public prosecutions is now being pressed to account for that judgment.

Director General of MI5 Ken McCallum delivers the annual Director General's Speech at Thames House, the headquarters of the UK's Security Service, in London, Britain, October 16, 2025. Jonathan Brady/Pool via REUTERS
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Overview

  • Downing Street released three witness statements from deputy national security adviser Matthew Collins that described large‑scale Chinese espionage and an economic‑security threat while also setting out a policy to co‑operate, compete and challenge Beijing.
  • MI5 director general Ken McCallum said Chinese state actors threaten UK security every day, noted a recent disruption operation, and voiced frustration that opportunities to prosecute were not pursued.
  • The chairs of the Home Affairs, Foreign Affairs, Justice and National Security committees demanded a fuller explanation from DPP Stephen Parkinson, as the JCNSS and the Intelligence and Security Committee launched formal inquiries.
  • No 10 called it "absurd" to suggest the prime minister should have intervened, denied any ministerial interference, and said Collins included current policy language for context under CPS handling controls.
  • Christopher Cash and Christopher Berry deny wrongdoing and now have no case to answer after the CPS withdrew charges under an Official Secrets Act case affected by a High Court ruling that raised the evidentiary threshold.