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Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson stated that the prime minister’s national security adviser, Jonathan Powell, had no involvement in the collapsed case against two men accused of spying for China. The charges against Christopher Cash and Christopher Berry were dropped last month, leading to criticism from ministers and MPs. Bridget Phillipson reassured the public that Jonathan Powell did not partake in any discussions surrounding the substance or evidence of the case.
Ministers expressed deep disappointment regarding the case not proceeding and emphasized that the Crown Prosecution Service should provide an explanation for the failure to bring forward a prosecution. Despite Downing Street’s denial of ministerial involvement in the case collapse, the director of public prosecutions, Stephen Parkinson, attributed the trial’s failure to the government’s failure to provide evidence regarding China as a national security threat. The Conservative Party has called for an urgent question in Parliament to address the reasons behind the trial’s collapse and suggested that Jonathan Powell may have failed to provide the necessary evidence to the CPS.
Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp demanded urgent clarification from ministers on why they did not disclose information regarding China’s threat to national security during the specified period. There have been calls for Jonathan Powell to resign if he was indeed behind the decision. The prime minister defended the government’s actions by pointing out that decisions on prosecution must be based on circumstances at the time of the alleged offense. Former Conservative ministers and advisers have highlighted the absence of an official designation of a country as a threat, pointing to various incidents of Chinese activity posing a threat to the UK
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