PA mediaA committee of MPs has warned that the systemic failures that led to the failed China espionage trial could be repeated without major reforms.
A report by the Joint Committee on National Security Strategy said “gross” mismanagement led prosecutors to drop charges against Chris Cash and Chris Berry, who were accused of passing sensitive material to a Chinese intelligence agent.
Both men maintain their innocence.
Critics accused the government of deliberately botching the case to avoid damaging trade relations with China, but the report found no “coordinated effort” to undermine the trial.
Committee chairman Matt Western warned that mishandling of similar cases in the future would “damage public trust”.
Mr Cash, a former parliamentary researcher, and Mr Berry, a China-based academic, were both charged under the Official Secrets Act in April 2024.
Mr Cash worked for two prominent China critics, MPs Tom Tugendhat, who was then chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee, and Alicia Kearns, who later held the same role.
The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said the case collapsed after Deputy National Security Adviser (DNSA) Matthew Collins refused to designate China an “enemy” at the time of the alleged crimes.
But the committee of MPs said they were “surprised” by the CPS decision, suggesting it “could have been put to a jury”.
The committee found that there was no “coordinated high-level effort” to thwart or disrupt the trial.
Instead, it was beset by “dangerous” mismanagement and “confusion and false expectations.”
Communication between the CPS and the government was “inadequate”, and an eight-month delay in receiving the second witness statement remains unexplained.
The report also rejected the government’s claim that similar tests would not be thwarted in the future under the National Security Act 2023. The law was brought in under the Tory government to reduce the number of cases of espionage – ranging from aiding the “enemy” to crimes involving foreign powers – and covers modern threats such as cyber attacks.
“We urge the government to avoid portraying the failure of the Cash/Berry case as merely a one-time peculiarity created by an outdated law,” the report said.
Western, who is a Labor MP, said: “As the global security environment deteriorates, sensitive national security matters will come to the fore more frequently.
“The government must show the public that it is confident in standing up to opponents when necessary: failing to do so will undermine public confidence in our institutions.”
The report calls on the government to consider introducing comprehensive reforms within six months to prevent such a recurrence.
The report said the role and responsibility of the DNSA – which had been “isolated and exposed” – should be urgently reviewed and improved.
Communication between the CPS and the government should also be “reviewed and speedily improved”.
In future trials, each espionage case will require a formal conference call within 30 days of the charge. These will help prosecutors, investigators, government witnesses and law officers quickly identify weaknesses in evidence.
The report said more “clarity” should be given on whether government witnesses are giving policy details or evidence.
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