Former MI6 chief questions collapse of China spy trial

There are growing questions over the collapse of a case against two men accused of spying for Beijing, with the former chief of the Secret Intelligence Service saying he is unsure why the prosecution was dropped.

- MILLIE COOKE POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT

It comes amid allegations that the prime minister's team had access to multiple documents that proved China was a national security risk but supposedly chose not to hand them over to the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) before the case was brought to a close.

And on the eve of Sir Keir Starmer's trip to Egypt, where he will attend a Middle East peace summit chaired by Donald Trump, the White House has reportedly warned that the failure to prosecute the two alleged Chinese spies risks undermining the special relationship - and could threaten intelligence sharing between Britain and the US.

Speaking about the collapse of the trial, Sir John Sawers told Times Radio: “I don't think it's got anything to do with intelligence. I think these two people accused of spying in parliament were low-grade reporters of opinion in parliament. What they were doing, if the allegations are true, was certainly illegal.

"And frankly, I'm a bit confused and unsure about why the prosecution was dropped. Of course, China poses an intelligence threat, a subversion threat here in the UK, as well as being an economic partner.