It's 'vitally important', he says, that this person is named, adding: 'It's not a matter of privilege really, it should be just a matter of national security, and then we can get on trying to figure out just how far this individual went,' he adds. He adds: 'Until you know who this was, you don't know for certain whether they had encountered you, whether they've come to your office, whether they'd had any access to your staff - we just don't know until you know.'

He says: 'It's quite ridiculous to have this burbling around all over the estate and nobody quite knowing who this is they were talking to.' The former Tory leader tells Sky News that these allegations are 'very serious indeed', and says it's 'not the first time' that Chinese spies have infiltrated parliament.Īs a result of these infiltrations, he says it is 'puzzling' that the government 'still does not want to call China a systemic threat'.Īsked about a report in The Spectator that MPs could use parliamentary privilege tomorrow to name the two men who were arrested - and particularly the parliamentary researcher - without fear of prosecution, Sir Iain said he is not planning on doing so himself, but calls on the security authorities to agree to him being named. Sir Iain Duncan Smith has called on the security authorities to name the alleged Chinese spy in parliament, saying it is a 'matter of national security'. He also says China is not 'playing ball' by helping to stop Russia's invasion of Ukraine and nor is it helping to deal with climate change, so the idea that engagement with them is 'critical' to those aims is a 'nonsense'. He calls on the government to 'get our policy straight', saying that we can engage as Rishi Sunak wants, but on our terms.

Such a policy 'weakens the response of the security services,' he says. Sir Iain notes that when Rishi Sunak ran for leader last summer, he labelled China a 'systemic threat', but since then, the policy has been 'watered down'. Turning to the bigger issue of the UK's stance towards China, he says the government's foreign policy is 'very much under serious question now'. He says he himself did not know about this until yesterday when the Sunday Times broke the story. In reference to James Cleverly's recent visit to China, he says: 'To what degree did the foreign secretary know about this arrest when he was going off to Beijing? Was he informed about this spying going on in parliament, and if so, why was this not raised at the time? Why were MPs not told about it?' Sir Iain Duncan Smith has told Sky News that Rishi Sunak's China strategy of engagement is very much in question after it was revealed that an alleged Chinese spy worked closely with senior Tories in parliament. Join us tomorrow from 6am for the very latest. And trade unions announced they will be reporting the government to the UN workers' rights watchdog over 'undemocratic' strikes law.But he refused to comment on spending commitments to fix schools - and said Labour is 'receptive' to the idea of giving more visas to Indian nationals in exchange for a trade deal.Labour's Jonathan Reynolds defended the party amid criticism that it is becoming a '1990s tribute act'.He said around 40 prisoners have been moved out of Wandsworth prison after the escape.The justice secretary told Sky News he has 'absolute confidence' in prison leadership to investigate the escape of Daniel Kahlife.Former cabinet minister Rory Stewart said Britain is 'not being serious enough' about the threat from Russian and Chinese spies.Former Tory leader Sir Iain Duncan Smith called for the authorities to name this alleged spy, saying it is a 'matter of national security'.Rishi Sunak met with Chinese Premier Li Qiang to convey 'significant concerns' after it emerged that a parliamentary researcher had been arrested for allegedly spying for China.Thank you for joining us on the Politics Hub for a busy day in Westminster news.

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