Chinese 'spy' linked with Prince Andrew met with two Prime Ministers

The alleged Chinese spy exposed as a ‘close confidant’ of Prince Andrew boasted about visiting Downing Street and met David Cameron and Theresa May.

On the desk of his plush office in central London, the man, who has been banned from Britain on national security grounds, proudly displayed pictures of himself with the two Tory Prime Ministers.

In an interview with Chinese state-controlled TV, the businessman, 50, whose identity is kept secret by a draconian court order, even bragged that he was invited to No 10 to celebrate the Chinese New Year.

This newspaper has also unearthed an extraordinary photograph of the alleged secret agent with Prince Andrew at a function at St James’s Palace.

The man, said in bombshell court papers to have formed an ‘unusual degree of trust’ with Andrew, also attended events at Buckingham Palace and Windsor Castle. The revelations last night fuelled calls for an full inquiry into how the alleged agent, known only as H6, infiltrated the Royal Family and gained access to Britain ’s top politicians.

Former Tory leader Iain Duncan Smith said: ‘I am appalled. What were our security services doing?

‘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?’

The latest scandal involving Andrew erupted on Thursday when a ruling by a special immigration commission revealed H6 had been barred from entering the UK after MI5 deemed him to be an agent who had engaged in ‘covert and deceptive activity’ on behalf of the Chinese Communist Party.

H6 was so close to Andrew he had been told he could act on the Duke’s behalf when dealing with potential clients in China, according to court documents.

Now this newspaper can reveal: 

• A firm run by H6 helped pay for former Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott to visit China;
• He bought a £1million suburban property which appears to have acted as an intelligence hub;
• Neighbours said he and Chinese colleagues were driven aroundin a blacked-out, chauffeured car;
• MI5 is reportedly investigating money given by Chinese donors to Prince Andrew. 

The alleged spy is a former junior civil servant in China who is accused of working for the United Front Work Department (UFWD), an arm of the Chinese state used to gather intelligence, recruit agents and buy influence abroad. 

Aged 31, he founded a company in London that initially provided travel services, but which later became a business consultancy.

Several years ago he was interviewed at his Mayfair office as part of a glowing profile by a state-controlled Chinese broadcaster.

He said that when Lord Cameron was Premier, he was invited to an event to celebrate Chinese New Year at 10 Downing Street. A photograph on his desk, revealed for the first time, above left, shows him talking to Lord Cameron in what appears to be No 10.

A second picture shows him in dinner jacket and bow tie with Theresa May and husband Sir Philip. It is unclear when the shot was taken and if Baroness May was Prime Minister at the time.

This newspaper can reveal his company has previously paid some of the costs incurred by former Labour Deputy Premier Lord Prescott, who died in November aged 86, during trips to China.

The man is believed to have met Andrew in 2012 but it was not until 2022, after he was rumbled by security services, that the Duke ‘dropped him’, it is claimed.

In the previous decade the man, who came to the UK to study in 2002, repeatedly visited Royal Palaces at the invitation of the Duke. He also attended the Duke’s 60th birthday party in 2020 at Royal Lodge within Windsor Great Park.

The picture, left, shows the man watching as the Duke chats to China’s then ambassador at a business event in St James’s Palace.

Andrew was also a guest of honour at a major business conference in London organised by H6 where a message from President Xi was read out.

China expert Clive Hamilton, whose book Hidden Hand warned of the dangers posed by Chinese spy networks, said: ‘Britain’s ruling elites, from prime ministers and princes down, have been deeply compromised by links to Chinese agents of influence. MI5 has a lot more work to do.’

A source close to Lord Cameron said he met ‘thousands of people at hundreds of functions’, adding: ‘We don’t have any further information about this individual.’

A spokesman for Lady May 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.’

No 10 declined the comment.

The Daily Telegraph yesterday claimed security services are scrutinising money received by Andrew. Last week he said he ‘ceased all contact’ with the alleged spy after concerns were raised, with ‘nothing of a sensitive nature ever being discussed’.

Additional reporting: Daisy Graham-Brown