UK MP's husband among three accused of spying for China

LONDON:

British police on Wednesday arrested three men on suspicion of spying for China, including the husband of a lawmaker from Prime Minister Keir Starmer's ruling Labour party.

Chinese espionage is a politically sensitive subject in Britain and the case could potentially become awkward for Starmer who visited Beijing recently as part of his resetting of relations with the Asian giant.

The trio, aged 39, 43 and 68, were arrested by counter-terrorism officers in London and Wales on suspicion of assisting a foreign intelligence service, London's Metropolitan police said.

"I have never seen anything to make me suspect my husband has broken any law," said MP Joani Reid after UK media reported that her husband David Taylor was among those arrested.

"I am not part of my husband's business activities and neither I nor my children are part of this investigation," she added.

All three men remain in custody and the arrests come amid rising concerns over alleged Chinese espionage in the UK.

Starmer has been criticised by opposition politicians, human rights groups and US President Donald Trump for greenlighting a massive new Chinese embassy in central London and for visiting Beijing earlier this year.

The UK leader has repeatedly defended his visit to China, the first by a British prime minister since 2018, as important to forge closer ties with the world's second largest economy.

Reid, who represents a constituency in Scotland and sits on parliament's Home Affairs Select Committee, defended herself against any potential accusations of her being close to Beijing.

"I have never been to China," she said. "I have never spoken on China or China-related matters in the Commons. I have never asked a question on China-related matters."