Dropped charges leave Commons vulnerable to espionage, says speaker

The President of the Commons said that the decision of lowering charges against two people accused of espionage for China may leave the parliament vulnerable to espionage.

Christopher Berry and Christopher Cash were charged with prejudicing and information for the security and interests of the state between 28 December 2021 and February 3, 2023.

Sir Lindsay Hoyle told Times that he took the security of the house as “incredibly seriously” and was thinking of starting a special action against double.

Mr. Berry and Mr. Cash previously rejected the accusations and described Beijing allegations as “malicious slander”.

The CPS announced that the charges against former parliament researcher and Teacher will be left at the beginning of last week because the “threshold of evidence” was not reached.

Stephen Parkinson, Director of Public Prosecutors, leading CPS, said his team was “alternative crimes” but concluded that “none of them are appropriate”.

In a letter to Shadow Interior Minister Chris Philp, Mr. Parkinson assured the decision that there is no “external pressure”.

The couple would start at the Woolwich Crown Court from 6 October.

Speaking outside the Old Bailey after the decision to stop legal proceedings on Monday, Cash said, “Justice is relieved that it was served”.

Mr. Berry, a teacher from Witney in Oxfordshire, and Mr. Cash of WhiteChapel in London were arrested in March 2023 as part of an investigation containing the anti -terrorist police.

For an enemy, they were accused of gathering information calculated as “directly or indirectly or indirectly useful or intended.”

A year later they were accused of April 2024 under the Official Secrets Law.

It was understood that Mr. Cash had reached many conservative deputies, including former Security Minister Tom Tugendhat and then the President of the United States Committee, Alicia Kearns.

During the charges, the Chinese Embassy spokesman, “China’s allegation of suspicion of ‘stealing British intelligence’ was completely fabricated,” he said.

They called the UK to “stop anti -Chinese political manipulation and stop doing such a gradual political nonsense”.