Action to get Keir Starmer’s ‘head out of the sand’ on China danger | Politics | News
The direct impact of the Iran war on daily lives in the UK is clearly visible. Many people woke up wondering if they could still afford to put gas in their cars or if their energy bills would go up.
But while the effects of traditional ‘kinetic’ warfare are clearly visible, insidious cyber attacks are overlooked. These attacks, carried out by hostile state actors such as China, Iran, Russia and North Korea and their agents, occur today and every day.
Attacks have the potential to disrupt communications networks and the digital infrastructure that supports the daily functioning of society.
The risks are clear. Hostile attacks continue. Action is needed now to protect Britain.
Cybersecurity has never been more critical to our national security, and we need to be vigilant against the threats we face.
As Shadow Minister for Science, Innovation and Technology, I have proposed Conservative amendments to the Cyber Security Bill currently going through parliament, which would enable the Government to get its head out of the sand in the face of the threat posed by China and other hostile states, and to produce a formal, binding list of countries that pose a threat to our National Security. And in connection with this, we are trying to rethink and overturn the decision to approve the Chinese Super Embassy espionage center in London.
As we have seen recently with the alleged spy cases in Westminster, the government must stop sitting on the fence when it comes to China and we must be clear about the threat this poses.
Despite overwhelming evidence that hostile state actors pose a threat to our national security, our amendments were rejected by Labor MPs.
In early 2024, the previous Conservative Government and the National Cyber Security Center (NCSC) confirmed that Chinese government loyalists had compromised Electoral Commission systems and targeted Parliamentarians’ email accounts in 2021 and 2022. Later that year, the NCSC issued a stark warning about the growing cybersecurity risk of China attacking energy, transportation, water and other critical networks. Reports of Chinese-backed cyber interference campaigns continued to proliferate in 2025, with a suspected attack on Foreign Office systems and the imposition of sanctions on companies with alleged links to the Chinese state that carried out cyber attacks on the UK in December.
China is not alone in launching malicious cyber attacks against us. But what is unique is this Government’s reluctance to name China a specific security threat, while it is keen to call out other adversaries, including Russia and Iran.
Just days after reports emerged in January this year that Chinese state-backed hackers had taken over the mobile phones of senior Downing Street officials between 2021 and 2024, the Prime Minister flew to China to discuss closer trade ties.
Ministers this week announced they will restrict overseas donations and impose a crypto ban ‘to protect UK democracy from the scourge of foreign actors’ – acknowledging the risks from hostile states The Government now needs to protect UK institutions and accept our changes.
The Cybersecurity Bill will soon return to Parliament, where all MPs will have the chance to vote on our amendments. We Conservatives are clear that the Government must recognize the UK’s most serious security threats and we will continue to stand up to China.
