China threat policy questioned amid urgent MI5 warnings
Despite MI5 sounding its most urgent alarm over Chinese intelligence activity in Westminster yet, the UK government has refused to label China a national security threat.
According to new MI5 analysis circulated to MPs last week, Chinese state-linked operatives are running “relentless” influence and information-gathering operations across Whitehall, using LinkedIn to target parliamentary researchers, advisers, and economists.
Yet, even as the security services ramp up their warnings, the political system around them is pulling them in the other direction.
The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) recently collapsed a high-profile spy case after ministers refused to confirm that China meets the legal threshold of a national security threat, a move that stunned intelligence specialists and triggered political backlash.
Dakota Cary, consultant at SentinelOne and fellow at the Atlantic Council’s Global China Hub, told City PM: “If they think their best bet is to not consider China a national security threat, I have questions about the direction of their foreign policy”.
“Why they thought that, and how these decisions get made, is the real question”, he added.
MI5’s widening alarm
The latest warning, jointly issued by Commons speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle and Lords speaker Lord McFall, identifies two LinkedIn accounts allegedly acting for China’s Ministry of State Security (MSS).
MI5 said this was part of a far broader pattern of covert approaches “at scale”, including offers of paid trips to China and cash-for-information via crypto.
The tactic may seem low-tech, but Cary explained that LinkedIn is precisely why it works.
“It’s a targeter’s perfect dream”, he said. “It’s where people brag about themselves and their achievements. If you’re a foreign intelligence service looking for somebody who does a particular job, LinkedIn makes it very easy”.
He warned that the target set is shifting: “I think what’s clear this time is they are very focused on access to parliament and staff on MPs – that’s a different focus to what has been public before”.
Staffers, researchers, and junior advisers, many still early in their political careers, are more reachable, less guarded, and often unaware of the risks.
One Commons researcher told the BBC he received a job offer from one of the profiles, written in broken English.
“If it were written in better English, you could be fooled”, he said.
China has dismissed the allegations as “pure fabrication”, accusing the UK of staging a “self-directed political farce” and “undermining China-UK relations”.
But MI5 says the overall campaign is strategic, sophisticated and long-term – and part of a global trend.
Similar Chinese influence operations have surfaced in Canada, Belgium, Germany and the US.
A threat the UK won’t name
While MI5 and other Five Eyes agencies describe Chinese espionage as an operation on an “epic scale”, the UK government is still refusing, both legally and publicly, to call China a hostile threat.
Prosecutors had to abandon a case involving two men accused of spying for China because the government would not certify that Beijing met the legal criteria under the Official Secrets Act.
“It wasn’t unintentional”, Carys said. “Whatever it is they’re pursuing, it must be valuable”.
The decision led Kemi Badenoch to accuse the government of “sucking up to Beijing”, while many have accused the UK of bending policy to preserve trade ties amid economic strain.
Still, British businesses in AI, advanced manufacturing, biotech, quantum computing, EVs, defence and deep tech all remain high-value targets for Chinese intelligence.
“If your business sector is in China’s five-year plan, then you’re in the crosshairs”, Cary said. “Their interest in technology is as expansive as the needs of Chinese companies.”
He pointed out that the supply chain’s dependence on China adds another layer of risk.
“There’s a feedback loop between Chinese companies and provincial governments,” he told City PM.
For firms tied to Chinese suppliers, the question has pivoted from whether Beijing will use leverage to when.
Effective security services
Still, the UK’s security services remain highly capable.
“So far, the UK is doing a really good job identifying and defending against Chinese influence operations”, said Cary. However, the UK’s political direction on China remains uncertain and, if ministers continue to avoid classifying China as a threat, Cary warned it could weaken future vigilance.