Tugendhat: Starmer’s China appeasement ‘sabotaged justice’

Tugendhat: Starmer’s China appeasement ‘sabotaged justice’

Former Security Minister Tom Tugendhat has unleashed a blistering attack on Prime Minister Keir Starmer, accusing him of personally enabling the collapse of a major Chinese espionage trial — and selling out Britain’s sovereignty in the process.

Writing in a fiery op-ed, Tugendhat claims the Labour government’s “capitulation to Beijing” has reached “shoddy new depths,” after Starmer’s team allegedly blocked prosecutors from branding China an “enemy” in court. The move, Tugendhat argues, torpedoed the case against two Britons accused of spying for Beijing — and erased years of counter-terror work.

Tugendhat revealed that Jonathan Powell, Starmer’s top security aide, told officials such language would “damage diplomatic ties,” effectively sinking the trial. “I find it impossible to believe the PM did not sanction this decision,” Tugendhat said, branding it a “cover-up dressed as caution.”

The ex-minister blasted Labour for “kowtowing to China” — from handing the Chagos Islands to Mauritius, to greenlighting Beijing’s new London embassy. He accused Starmer and Ed Miliband of pursuing “economic disarmament,” forcing Britain into dependency on Chinese-made solar panels and batteries.

Quoting Lenin’s warning to “probe with bayonets,” Tugendhat said the CCP sees only weakness in London’s approach. “When I spoke out, China sanctioned me — not for what I did to them, but for refusing to be silent in Britain,” he wrote. “Beijing doesn’t respect lawyers’ words. It respects strength.”

The explosive claims have triggered demands for a parliamentary inquiry into whether political interference scuppered one of Britain’s most sensitive national security cases.

Key Takeaways

• Tugendhat blames Starmer for collapse of Chinese spy prosecution.

• Claims UK ‘kowtowing’ to Beijing endangers national security and sovereignty.

• Calls for full inquiry into political meddling and Labour’s pro-China stance.

Source: Daily Mail / Tom Tugendhat column