Question
The evidence that China poses a threat to our national security and democracy is clearly overwhelming. We have spent a lot of time discussing this matter in the House, including the threats to parliamentarians and the overall security threat. The Minister has spoken in glowing terms about the foreign influence registration scheme, which the Government introduced, and said that it is working. Can he give an explanation to this House as to why China is not on the enhanced tier of FIRS?
Answer
The right hon. Lady is a very experienced Member of this House and has served in very senior roles in government, which is why I hope she understands that the Government sometimes have to make quite nuanced, balanced judgments when it comes to national security policy and our relationship with other countries. There will be those in this place—I am not saying that she falls into this category—who seek to categorise our relationship with China in a single word. She knows from her experience in government that it is much more nuanced than that. As successive Governments have maintained, our relationship with China cannot be reduced to a single word. However, we recognise—it is important to be absolutely up front about this, as I have been from this Dispatch Box on many occasions—that China poses a series of threats to UK national security, from cyber-attacks to foreign interference and espionage, as well as transnational repression. We will challenge all those threats robustly and we will make sure that we have the appropriate toolkit to do so.10% point-scoring 20% vibes
Verdict: RED (18/100)
The exchange contains one question, which asked why China is not on the enhanced FIRS tier. The reply only partly responds: it refers in general terms to 'nuanced, balanced judgments' in national security policy and says the relationship 'cannot be reduced to a single word', but it gives no tier criteria, assessment, or specific reason for the decision. The answer is therefore largely hedged, and the person who asked would likely need to submit a follow-up for the actual reasoning.
How we got there
| Question item | Coverage | Specificity | Rationale |
|---|---|---|---|
| Why China is not on the enhanced tier of the Foreign Influence Registration Scheme (FIRS). | Partially Addressed | Hedged | The reply never states why China is not on the enhanced FIRS tier. It only offers the general rationale that national security policy requires 'nuanced, balanced judgments' and that the relationship 'cannot be reduced to a single word'. It names no tier criteria, no assessment, and no specific reason for the designation decision, so the question's core 'why' is left largely unanswered. |