China: Threat to UK Interests

7. What assessment he has made of the level of threat China poses to UK interests.

This Government fully recognise that China poses a series of threats to UK national security, from cyber-attacks, foreign interference and espionage targeting our domestic institutions to the transnational repression of Hongkongers. Yet China, as the world’s second largest economy and the UK’s third largest trading partner, presents the UK with opportunities—not engaging is no choice at all. Our approach to China is consistent: we will co-operate where we can and challenge where we must.

It is good to hear the Minister acknowledge that China is a threat. The directors of GCHQ and MI5 have been clear that China presents the most significant state-based threat to the UK. The Government have previously talked about their China audit; will they commit to publishing it in full?

As the hon. Gentleman knows, there have been a series of questions on this issue in recent times. I am happy to update him again in writing.

We have all seen the corrosive impact of the Chinese Government’s policies in Africa, in the south Pacific and throughout the Commonwealth. That is as important for our national interest as it is for the countries affected. What are we doing about it?

We continue to work internationally. My hon. Friend will know that I am also the Commonwealth Minister, and part of that work involves showing that some of the United Kingdom’s most important relationships are with those countries, whether across Africa or in the Caribbean.

Nine weeks ago, the Government were told that Chinese embassy guards were brandishing prohibited electroshock weapons and threatening peaceful vigil holders with them. The Chinese Communist party either breached articles 41 and 27 of the Vienna convention, or it procured these weapons illegally in the UK. The Chinese Communist party will not waive diplomatic immunity, so when will Ministers stop hiding behind a dead-end Metropolitan police investigation and do something to deter future hostilities in the UK?

Let me be clear: any attempt by a foreign state to coerce, intimidate, harass or harm individuals on UK soil will never be tolerated, but the hon. Lady knows as well as I do that there is a live investigation by the Metropolitan police. Members of this House should respect the fact that the Metropolitan police are investigating. Frankly, she knows better, and I hope that she will wait for the investigation. That is when we will listen to what it has to say.

I thank the Minister for his comments about the terrible floods in Nepal. A number of residents in my constituency have lost family in the region, and they will be listening to what the Government have to say on the issue. What work is the Minister doing with Cabinet colleagues to tackle the important issue of online disinformation? We know that a lot of that disinformation comes from bad state actors.

My hon. Friend will know that we work across Government to tackle disinformation. Within my portfolio we have increased funding for the BBC World Service, which is the most trusted newscaster across the world. That is a way in which the Foreign Office tackles disinformation.

I call the shadow Minister.

The new shadow Foreign Secretary, my right hon. Friend the Member for Tonbridge (Tom Tugendhat), is in Taipei, where Taiwan’s Defence Ministry has warned that an increasingly unpredictable China is intensifying preparations to blockade and encircle the island. That comes in the same week that the US exposed another extensive Chinese state-sponsored hacking operation against Government institutions and critical networks. With Beijing threatening Taiwan, targeting our allies and conducting espionage against this country, will the Foreign Secretary finally state plainly that China poses a threat to British interests, and will he place China in the enhanced tier of the foreign influence registration scheme?

The right hon. Lady knows that we keep all these things under review. As ever, I am happy to write to her.