The Chinese national was described by an aide to British royal as sitting “at the very top of a tree that many, many people would like to be on.”
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The case will raise fresh questions about the judgment of Prince Andrew, who was stripped of his military titles and royal patronages amid scrutiny of his links with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. | Justin Tallis/AFP via Getty Images
December 13, 2024 11:37 am CET
A Chinese businessman described as a “close confidant” of Prince Andrew has been kicked out of the U.K. on national security grounds.
The man, a 50-year-old Chinese national who is referred to in court documents only as H6, lost an appeal against the British government’s decision to bar him from the country, a newly released ruling by the country’s immigration appeals commission shows.
Evidence presented to judges laid bare the man’s links to Prince Andrew, the scandal-hit brother of King Charles III — including being invited to his birthday party in 2020.
A letter from Dominic Hampshire, a senior adviser to the British royal, makes clear that H6 was able to “act on behalf of the Duke in engagements with potential partners and investors in China.”
And Hampshire told H6 in a 2020 letter that he hoped his invite to the duke’s birthday party made it “clear to you where you sit with my principal and indeed his family.”
“You should never underestimate the strength of that relationship,” Hampshire wrote, according to the ruling. “Outside of his closest internal confidants, you sit at the very top of a tree that many, many people would like to be on.”
The state’s case against H6 — included in the ruling published Thursday — said the Chinese national failed to provide “a full and open account” of his relationship with the British royal.
H6 was, the appeal heard, “in a position to generate relationships between senior Chinese officials and prominent U.K. figures which could be leveraged for political interference purposes by the Chinese State.”
Judges were told that he downplayed links with the United Front Work Department (UFWD), a Chinese agency that attempts to harvest intelligence and gain influence over elite foreign nationals, when questioned by British authorities.
Devices surrendered
The documents outline how H6 was stopped at a British port in November 2021 and ordered to surrender digital devices including his mobile phone. Then, in 2023, he was taken off a flight from Beijing to London and told that he faced exclusion from the U.K.
His device, according to the ruling, contained direct contacts with the UFWD and a document which included “questions posed by the Chinese Embassy regarding strategy.”
“We have reason to believe you are engaging, or have previously engaged, in covert and deceptive activity on behalf of the United Front Work Department (UFWD) which is an arm of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) state apparatus,” he was told in a letter from the British government.
“The UFWD is reported to have a remit to engage in political interference, including targeting the U.K.’s democratic processes. As such, we therefore assess that you are likely to pose a threat to U.K. national security.”
H6 told officials while being interviewed about his exclusion from the U.K. that he had no connections to anyone in politics in China. He defended his business interests in the U.K. and their economic benefit to the country.
But his account was disputed by British authorities, who concluded that he “was frequently connected to officials associated with the Chinese State.”
The case will raise fresh questions about the judgment of Prince Andrew, who was stripped of his military titles and royal patronages by the late Queen Elizabeth II amid scrutiny of his links with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
