British Shadow Foreign Secretary Priti Patel on Sunday called for China to be placed high on the UK’s list of countries that pose national security risks.
The 52-year-old Indian-origin frontline member of the opposition Conservative Party, led by Kimi Badenoch, recently revealed that an alleged Chinese spy accessed Buckingham Palace circles through King Charles III’s younger brother, Prince Andrew. Expressed concern over the scam.
He attacked Labor Prime Minister Keir Starr and his cabinet for prioritizing trade ties with China over national security.
“It’s obviously a complicated law, but China should always be there,” Priti Patel told The Sunday Times in an interview when asked if China should be included in the proposed foreign influence registration scheme. The list is designed to force anyone working for a foreign power to declare their lobbying to avoid any security risks.
“We’re dealing with an extraordinary regime that for more than a decade, frankly, has had all kinds of intrusions into our country through national security, intellectual property, cyber activity and misinformation. During the Covid period, misinformation, misinformation, was absolutely critical. And then, of course, the spy,” she said.
The former home secretary said she remains “skeptical” of Chinese video-sharing platform TikTok and wants to consider joining the US in banning the UK.
Patel also expressed concern over China’s plans to build a new so-called “super embassy” on a site it bought near the Tower of London in 2018. While the proposal was rejected by the local Tower Hamlets council in 2022 after objections from police and residents, the application has now been escalated for review by UK Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner.
“It fills me with absolute horror that Angela Rayner is in charge of making decisions. I think the country should be very concerned about that,” Patel told The Sunday Times.
“I am concerned about the direction of travel that Labor is choosing with China for a variety of reasons, Hong Kong being one of them. Remember Starmer met President Xi Jinping hours before 45 pro-democracy activists were arrested and jailed in Hong Kong,” he said at the G20 summit in Brazil last month. said of Starmer’s meeting on the sidelines of the conference.
The pro-Brexit shadow minister also expressed concern over the Labor government’s stance on closer ties with the European Union (EU). As one of the early contenders to succeed Rishi Sunak as party leader after the disastrous general election result for the Tories in July, Patel told the newspaper she felt “more motivated than ever”. His party’s disappointing electoral fortunes put Badenoch on the road to power in time for the next election in five years.
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