FLOODS Minister Emma Hardy has refused to call China a threat to national security and said it has not been given a green light by the government to spy in the UK.

Asked if China has been given a free pass, Hardy told GB News: “No, absolutely not, and thanks for raising it so I can make it clear to you and your viewers what’s actually happened. This was based on what happened back in 2023, so under the previous government.

“And back in 2023, Russia wasn’t considered a threat, so the evidence that they had at that time was taken to the Crown Prosecution Service, and they decided to go ahead with a prosecution.

“Now, since 2023 there’s been another case in the High Court, and what that case has meant is that the amount of evidence required, the level of evidence is now higher than it was back in 2023 and they’ve therefore dropped the case.

“Now we as a government are disappointed that this has happened, but to be absolutely clear, this is based on the evidence and the status of China from 2023, it is not based on the circumstances which the present government finds themselves in.”

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She refused to describe China as a threat to the UK: “We consider that China is a challenge to us, and we have a different relationship with China.

“It is a large trading partner, and we know that because it’s a country that we trade with, but we also co-operate where we need to co-operate, but we also challenge where we need to challenge.

“But of course, you know, we’re a responsible government. We act in the national interest and, as with every single country, everything is under constant evaluation.”