MPs expected to grill minister over collapse of China spy trial as Commons resumes after recess – UK politics live | Politics

Last night the Conservative Party published the text of the open letter. Kemi Badenoch Keir Starmer about the collapse of the Chinese spy case. Badenoch said Starmer should arrange for a minister to make a statement on the issue in the House of Commons today and outlined six questions he said needed answers.

For your information, here they are:

· Is your claim that no minister knew anything about the government’s interactions with the CPS? [Crown Prosecution Service] For “months” when your government refused to give CPS the material it requested?

· Ministers made in HMT [His Majesty’s Treasury]Home Office or FCDO [Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office] Have you ever informed Mr. Prime Minister about this issue or touched on this issue in any way? Did Jonathan Powell mention this to you at any point?

· Does your government still deny that a meeting involving Jonathan Powell and the FCDO permanent secretary took place in early September? If not, why did the home secretary and your spokesman deny this?

· Ministers now say your national security adviser is “not involved in the substance of the case and the discussions on this issue”. What does this mean? If he wasn’t “involved” in the decision to not give CPS what they needed for months, who was?

· Does the government now accept that Dan Jarvis’s statement to the House of Commons on 15 September, that the government gave no warning and was not involved, was misleading? Will you ensure that the record is corrected immediately?

· Is it still your government’s position to claim that it is impossible to argue that China is a threat in court? If so, do you think the former director of prosecution, two former cabinet secretaries and a former head of MI6 are at fault?

Good morning. Keir Starmer He will be in Egypt today and attend the Middle East peace summit, which will be co-chaired by Donald Trump. The Prime Minister will be a minor figure in a big global story and Yohannes Lowe covers it all in our Middle East live blog.

MPs in Westminster are returning to the House of Commons after a four-week conference break, during which news there will not make global headlines. But interestingly, a tweet Steve Witkoff, President Trump’s peace envoy has managed to make Gaza the main topic of discussion in Westminster politics this morning.

About two hours ago, Witkoff posted: this is in X.

I would like to recognize the vital role the UK has played in assisting and coordinating the efforts that have brought us to this historic day in Israel. I especially want to recognize the incredible contributions and tireless efforts of National Security Advisor Jonathan Powell.

What did this seem like an answer to? Mike HuckabeeUS Ambassador to Israel, Published on X Commenting on a video clip yesterday, education secretary Bridget Phillipson said in an interview on Sunday morning that the UK had played a key role behind the scenes in shaping the peace deal announced by Trump. Huckabee, a Trump/Netanyahu supporter who has previously publicly criticized the Labor government’s foreign policy, said:

I assure you he is delusional. He can always thank @realDonaldTrump for setting the record straight.

Witkoff’s tweet read like a minor White House-approved rebuke and reassurance to London that the ambassador was not speaking on behalf of the administration.

But Witkoff’s decision to go public with lavish praise for Powell also means he is trying to assist the UK national security adviser at a time when he is under intense pressure from opposition parties blaming him for the collapse of the Chinese spy case. At work ‘Peter Walker’One night story on this topic.

Powell is under increasing pressure because, with the recess over, MPs will now be able to use all the tools at parliament’s disposal to demand a fuller explanation from ministers about what happened. They can table urgent questions or even use the SO24 (standing order 24) procedure to request an urgent discussion. Speaker Lindsay Hoyle was furious at the decision to drop the spying inquiry (because it involved allegations of spying within parliament) and would likely be sympathetic to requests for IQs or emergency debates. When ministers know that a UQ may be granted they often decide to make a formal ministerial statement instead.

What’s this Hamish FalconerThe Middle East minister hinted this would happen in an interview on the Today program this morning. When asked if the public could get a proper explanation in parliament as to why the espionage case collapsed, he replied:

I will not get in the way of the Speaker as to what will be tabled in parliament, but I expect parliament to debate this issue at a later date.

Falconer was referring to the fact that the Presidency only officially announced what expressions and NQs were allowed at around 1pm on Monday.

Powell is blamed for the collapse of the case because the government allegedly refused to accept a declaration to the prosecution that China posed a threat to national security, without which the prosecution would not have been able to bring this case. Powell allegedly held back to avoid angering the Chinese government.

Ministers say the decision to drop the case was made by the Crown Prosecution Service, not the government, and that they were constrained by official government policy at the time the alleged crimes were committed, when the Conservatives were in power.

Falconer offered a slightly new version of this argument in his Today interview, saying the Official Secrets Act should have been updated sooner. He said:

A lawsuit was filed regarding alleged crimes under the Official Secrets Act, which is a very old legislation written in 1911.

Unfortunately, the case covers the period before new legislation comes into force in 2023 [the National Security Act].

So the CPS, who rightly did these things independently of the government, were trying to put together a case based on evidence from a period when both the Official Secrets Act was in force rather than the National Security Act and when this Conservative government rather than the Labor government was in force.

Here is the agenda of the day.

Morning: Kemi Badenoch visits Grantham to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Margaret Thatcher’s birth.

10.30: Scotland’s deputy first minister Kate Forbes opens the final day of the SNP’s conference in Aberdeen. First minister John Swinney wraps up the conference with a speech at 3.05pm.

11.30: A lobby briefing is being held in Downing Street.

12.30pm (UK time): Keir Starmer will meet President Trump at the Middle East peace summit in Sharm el-Sheikh, which Trump co-chairs with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi.

14.30: Housing secretary Steve Reed answers questions in the House of Commons.

After 15.30: There are likely to be many pressing questions and ministerial statements, including one regarding the collapse of the Chinese espionage case.

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