The speaker of the House of Commons has hinted at a possible security crackdown in the wake of the China spy scandal, as he said he was speaking to officials about “access arrangements”.
Sir Lindsay Hoyle said he had sought legal advice on how to “pursue this issue in other ways”, days after telling MPs he was “very angry” over the collapse of a case against two men accused of spying for China.
Ministers are continuing to face questions over why prosecutors dropped the charges, which has sparked a political row over who is to blame for the failure to prosecute.
Speaking in the Commons on Monday afternoon, Sir Lindsay said: “I remain disappointed by what has happened in this case.
“I am – alongside the lord speaker – continuing to seek advice from officials and specialist legal advice on what steps might be taken to pursue this issue in other ways.
“While it would be not appropriate to talk in detail about the security matters on the floor of the House, I am also speaking to officials about access arrangements.”
The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) dropped the case against Christopher Cash, a former parliamentary researcher, and Christopher Berry in September after deeming the evidence did not show China was a threat to national security.
Both men, who deny wrongdoing, had been accused of passing secrets to China.
The government has faced questions about whether anything could have been done to prevent the case from collapsing, and whether or not China is considered a security threat.
The security minister told MPs on Monday that there is “nothing” Sir Keir Starmer “or any other minister” could have done to prevent the case falling apart.
Dan Jarvis said: “Ultimately it was an entirely independent decision by the CPS to discontinue the case and they have confirmed that they came under no outside pressure to do so.”
Ministers have pointed to the previous Tory government’s position on China, which classed the country as a challenge.
Mr Jarvis urged the Conservatives to “stop throwing mud” over the issue and pressed them on whether any Tory ministers had been involved in the provision of evidence.
Responding to an urgent question from shadow home secretary Chris Philp, Mr Jarvis said: “The party opposite have refused to confirm if any Conservative ministers or special advisers were involved in the provision of evidence under the previous government. I wonder if any of the former ministers here can provide the answers today.”
He continued: “I gently say to the opposition front bench they need to stop throwing mud, and start coming to terms with what happened on their watch.”
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