Overview
- Prosecutors dropped the case against Christopher Cash and Christopher Berry on 15 September after the CPS said the government did not provide evidence that China was a national security threat at the time of the alleged offences.
- Prime Minister Keir Starmer said no ministers were involved in decisions on evidence and argued any trial had to reflect the 2021–23 position under the previous government, a stance he reiterated during his visit to India.
- Former top civil servants Simon Case and Lord Mark Sedwill publicly questioned the explanation, saying China was clearly a threat, while legal experts challenged the idea that an Official Secrets Act case required a formal ‘enemy’ designation.
- Jonathan Hall KC, the independent reviewer of terrorism and state threats legislation, said the public explanation is inadequate, confirmed he is investigating, and stated that China is a threat to UK national security.
- Media reports said Treasury concerns about trade influenced a decision to fold details of a cross‑Whitehall ‘China audit’ into a broader strategy, and the opposition’s Chris Philp claimed multiple contemporaneous documents showing a China threat were available but not disclosed to the CPS.