Prime Minister Keir Starmer has confirmed that Downing Street will publish a key witness statement at the centre of the controversy over dropped spying charges against two British men accused of working for China.
Addressing MPs during Prime Minister’s Questions, Starmer said the statement from Deputy National Security Adviser Matthew Collins would be released after a brief review to ensure all information could be made public.
The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) cleared the way for publication late on Tuesday, saying it had no objection since the case was no longer active.
Recall the case involved former parliamentary researcher Christopher Cash and teacher Christopher Berry, both accused of espionage under the Official Secrets Act.
Prosecutors abandoned the charges last month, saying the evidential threshold could no longer be met. Both men have consistently denied wrongdoing.
The collapse of the case has sparked a political row, with Conservative MPs accusing the Labour government of interfering in the judicial process.
Business Secretary, Kemi Badenoch claimed Starmer had not been transparent about his government’s role, but the Prime Minister rejected her allegations as completely scurrilous.
Starmer argued that the case failed because the previous Conservative government did not formally designate China as a threat to UK national security, which was crucial for prosecution.
He said Collins’ witness statement was made independently and without ministerial influence.
Downing Street later clarified that Starmer only became aware of the evidence after the case was dropped and had not been briefed in advance.
Meanwhile, former adviser Dominic Cummings alleged that China had breached UK government systems for years, accessing highly classified intelligence. MI5 chief Ken McCallum is expected to outline the scale of Chinese espionage in a national security update on Thursday.
