FREE speech and democracy will always be defended in the face of Chinese attacks, senior MPs insisted this morning.
Nuclear Minister Andrew Bowie vowed to safeguard the “British way of life” amid shock revelations that communist hackers accessed personal data from 40 million UK voters and targeted MPs.
GettyMinisters today vowed to protect British democracy in the face of cyber attacks by the Chinese[/caption]
ReutersDeputy PM Oliver Dowden will update the Commons today on how the Chinese are trying to infiltrate British democracy and what steps are being taken to stop them succeeding[/caption]
Mr Bowie told LBC: “The fact is that this Government has invested a lot of time, money and effort in ensuring that our cybersecurity capabilities are at the place they need to be, we’ve increased the powers of our intelligence and security community to be able to deal with these threats.
“And we will stop at nothing to ensure that the British people, our democracy, our freedom of speech and our way of life is defended.”
Last night The Sun exclusively revealed that in 2021 Chinese hackers struck at the heart of British democracy and accessed 40 million voters’ personal details.
The Communist superstate will be named and shamed in Parliament today – as the key players involved are slapped with hefty sanctions.
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Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Dowden will also warn dozens that politicians have been targeted by Chinese hackers.
Later the Foreign Office will add a number of Chinese suspects involved to an official blacklist.
It’s understood the United States government will also point to Beijing for a cyber attacks on America today.
The cyber attack has renewed calls for the Foreign Office to take a harsher stance on China.
Britain and the East Asian state share close trade and economic ties.
But experts have warned this comes at too great a risk to national security.
Mr Bowie said: “We have to have a grown-up, pragmatic relationship with China.
“And that means looking at each of these investments in the round, on a case-by-case basis, ensuring that our security and our individual liberties and freedoms are not undermined by any of the investments that are that are underway.”
Meanwhile a small group of vocal China critics have been called to a briefing by Parliament’s director of security Alison Giles about attacks on their computers.
They include former Tory leader Sir Iain Duncan Smith, former minister Tim Loughton, crossbench peer Lord Alton and SNP MP Stewart McDonald.
The four are members of the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China group which monitors the increasingly hostile Asian power.
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