Christine Lee, a lawyer accused of trying to interfere in British politics on behalf of the Chinese government, lost her legal challenge against the UK's domestic intelligence agency MI5 on Tuesday.
The tribunal's decision came a day after British authorities named Chinese national Yang Tengbo as an alleged spy who was close to Prince Andrew and was raised by two prime ministers. British.
This is the latest one.
Who is Yang Tengbo?
Yang, 50, also known as Chris Yang, is listed as a director of Hampton Group International, a business consulting firm that advises UK-based companies on their operations in China. He was photographed at events with senior UK politicians, including former prime minister David Cameron and Theresa May.
Yang is reportedly a key member of Pitch@Palace China, a Prince Andrew initiative to support entrepreneurs.
Yang worked as a junior civil servant in China before arriving in the UK in 2002 to study. He earned a master's degree in public administration and public policy at York University before starting his business.
He was granted the right to live and work in the UK indefinitely in 2013.
What happened to Prince Andrew?
Details of Yang's case emerged last week at a tribunal, the Special Immigration Appeals Commission (SIAC), which upheld the British authorities' decision to ban Yang from coming to into the UK in 2023. The Home Office said he was believed to have “hid. and fraudulent activity” for the Chinese Communist Party.
Judges with MI5, Britain's domestic intelligence, agreed that Yang was “a threat to national security” and dismissed his appeal. The tribunal heard that in 2021, authorities found documents that showed how close Yang was to Prince Andrew, King Charles' younger brother.
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One letter from a senior adviser to Andrew told Yang, “Outside of (Andrew's) closest confidants, you are sitting at the very top of a tree that many, many people would love to be.”
The British Home Office told Yang it had reason to believe he was “engaged, or had previously been involved, in covert and fraudulent activities on behalf of the United Front Work Department (UFWD), which is a branch of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) state. equipment,” in a letter cited in the SIAC ruling.
The tribunal said that when Yang was interviewed by immigration authorities, he did not give a full account of his relationship with the prince.
Authorities have not released the information Yang allegedly obtained or was trying to obtain. But the tribunal cited a 2022 statement by the head of MI5 which described the objectives of the United Front Operations Division as buying and influencing, amplifying voices outside China and silencing those who ' criticism of the Chinese government's authority.
Who is Christine Lee?
Britain's Security Service issued a security alert to all lawyers in January 2022 warning that London-based lawyer Christine Lee was known to be involved in “inter- political future in the UK” in coordination with the United Front Work Department.
Lee's firm, Christine Lee & Co., provided legal services primarily to the British Chinese community and had served as legal adviser to the Chinese embassy in London. According to official records, she gave 500,000 pounds ($906,000 Cdn) to Labor MP Barry Gardiner, mostly for office expenses. Her son, Daniel Wilks, worked as Gardiner's assistant for five years.
Lee was once recognized by the Prime Minister's Office, during Theresa May's term, for “promoting engagement, understanding and cooperation between the Chinese and British communities in the UK”.
On Tuesday, three judges at the Investigatory Powers Tribunal unanimously dismissed Lee's claims, saying MI5 had issued the political interference warning for “legitimate reasons”.
The response from Beijing
Yang vehemently denied the treason charges and said he suffered as a result of a changing political climate that had increased tensions between Britain and China.
“I have done nothing wrong or illegal,” he said in a statement. “The broad description of me as a 'traitor' is completely wrong.”
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian on Tuesday called the treason charges against Yang “ridiculous,” while the Chinese Embassy in Britain criticized UK lawmakers for “smearing” China.
Lee, who has not been charged with a crime, said the security measures against her were politically motivated and violated human rights.
The answer in the British Parliament
Prime Minister Keir Starmer said that he is concerned about the challenge that China is putting, but that he stood by his government's strategy for dialogue and cooperation with Beijing.
Starmer, who took office this summer, has sought to mend broken ties and in November became the first British leader to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping since 2018.
Opposition lawmaker John Duncan Smith, who is a leading critic of Beijing, said it shows the clear threat that China poses.
“The reality is that there are many, many more involved in this exact type of exploitation that is going on,” he said.
Another royal headache
Andrew's office said on Friday that the royal family met with Yang “through official channels” and that nothing of a sensitive nature was discussed. The statement did not specify the date when the prince had “ceased all communications” with Yang.
Andrew was appointed Britain's special representative for international trade and investment in 2001. But he was forced to resign in 2011 amid growing concern over his relationship with convicted Jeffrey Epstein 18 months in prison after pleading guilty to soliciting a minor for. prostitution
Look back as Prince Andrew blasted for what many see as a disastrous interview with the BBC, in which he spoke about his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein and denied wrongdoing any
Andrew gave a disastrous interview to the BBC in 2019 explaining the nature of Epstein's relationship. Andy strongly denied that he had sexually abused a teenager he met through Epstein, but in 2021 he settled a lawsuit she filed, awarding a sum of money to the plaintiff's charity.
Early the following year, Queen Elizabeth removed his honorary military positions and gave up his leadership of several charities.
Britain's most prominent anti-monarchy group has called for a parliamentary inquiry into alleged royal corruption.
“When a Chinese spy befriends a royal, they want access to the British state. We need to know if members of the royal family have given them what they want,” said Graham Smith, head of the Republic.
