UK woman Christine Lee, labelled Chinese spy by MI5, says she was a ‘political football’

A woman publicly branded a Chinese spy and a threat to the nation’s security by Britain’s intelligence agency MI5 says the “politically-motivated” decision had destroyed her life and left her a prisoner in her own home.

In January 2022, the domestic spy agency MI5 sent out an alert notice (IA) about lawyer Christine Lee, alleging she was “involved in political interference activities” in the United Kingdom on behalf of China’s ruling Communist Party.

The unprecedented warning, circulated to lawmakers, said Lee had “facilitated financial donations to serving and aspiring parliamentarians on behalf of foreign nationals based in Hong Kong and China”.

Lee, along with her son, is now suing the spy agency, arguing it had acted unlawfully. Since the alert was issued she has not spoken publicly, but in a witness statement submitted to the Investigatory Powers Tribunal in London, she said it had ruined her reputation and career.

“In short, I can summarise the issuance of the notice by the Respondent has totally destroyed my life, my family’s lives, my business and my business colleagues’ lives,” she said.

Amid a deterioration in relations in recent years, British security chiefs have regularly warned of the threat posed by China, while both London and Beijing have traded spying accusations, with Lee’s case one of the most high-profile.