According to a report from the Daily Mail, the unidentified Chinese businessman, referred to in legal filings as "H6," reportedly claimed in an interview with Chinese state-controlled television that he had been invited to Downing Street to celebrate Chinese New Year. Photos uncovered by the Daily Mail depict the man alongside Prince Andrew at St. James’s Palace and former Prime Ministers David Cameron and Theresa May.
Court documents reveal that H6 built an “unusual degree of trust” with Prince Andrew, attending events at Buckingham Palace and Windsor Castle. H6 was reportedly so close to the Duke of York that he was authorized to act on Andrew's behalf in dealings with potential Chinese clients. These revelations have sparked calls for a thorough investigation.
"I am appalled. What were our security services doing?” former Conservative leader Sir Iain Duncan Smith said. “This man not only had access to the Duke, he has penetrated the heart of the British government, meeting prime ministers. He would have been sending information he picked up to his masters in Beijing. When will they take the China threat seriously?”
A special immigration commission ruling revealed on Thursday that H6 has been barred from entering the UK after being identified as an agent conducting “covert and deceptive activity” on behalf of the Chinese Communist Party. H6 is reportedly a former junior civil servant in China who worked for an arm of the Chinese state used to gather intelligence abroad.
The alleged spy established a business consultancy in London. He was interviewed from his London office years ago by a Chinese broadcaster where he bragged that while PM Cameron was in office, he was invited to attend a Chinese New Year event at 10 Downing Street. The alleged spy also showed a photograph on his desk that showed him alongside Cameron. Another picture showed him with former PM Theresa May and her husband.
Both Cameron and May's representatives distanced themselves from the alleged spy. A spokesperson for Cameron stated he had met “thousands of people at hundreds of functions” and “we don’t have any further information about this individual.” Similarly, May's spokesperson said, “She is photographed at numerous events in any given year; as such, she doesn’t remember when or where this particular photograph was taken or the man in question.”
H6 reportedly first met Prince Andrew in 2012 and maintained the relationship until 2022, when the Duke severed ties after he was exposed by security services.
