Tory researcher accused of spying for China breaks silence on being 'fall guy' for security services

Nov 11, 2026 - 18:00

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Tory researcher accused of spying for China breaks silence on being 'fall guy' for security services

A British man who was charged with spying for China has broken his silence after the case was thrown out of court.

Chris Cash, a former parliamentary researcher, denied accusations of providing information prejudicial to the interests of the state in breach of the Official Secrets Act.

Speaking to the BBC, he has claimed to be a "convenient fall guy" for UK police, who wanted to put espionage threats by foreign states "on the map".

He had been charged alongside Christopher Berry, 33, with the pair due to go to trial until prosecutor Tom Little told London's Old Bailey Court they would offer no evidence against the pair.

The case had been based on more than 6,000 messages between the two men, in which they were accused of sharing private information, including a "secret" meeting Mr Berry had with a senior Chinese official.

Mr Cash, a staffer for Conservative MP Alicia Kearns who also worked on the China Research Group, admitted he had been "unprofessional and naive" in sending "gossiping" messages with his friend, Mr Berry, whom he had met in 2018 when they both taught English in China.

He insisted he would "never do anything" to harm UK national security, however.

The British nationals were accused of spying between December 2021 and February 2023.

However, the case faced public fury after it fell apart because Government officials could not say China had been classed as an "enemy" at the time.

House of Commons Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle declared Parliament "has been spied on", and the MPs' offices "have been infiltrated".

Leader of the Conservatives, Kemi Badenoch, declared in the chamber: "This all stinks of a cover-up."

Mr Cash said, despite prosecutors dropping all charges, he felt "traduced in Parliament".

"It was almost like I was convicted in the court of public opinion again, by people who I had worked with and trusted and that felt horrible," he said.

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He added: "I'm angry and upset with how everything played out, and I do feel let down."

UK security alleged the messages between the pair had been passed to people linked to the Chinese state. China previously called the allegations of spying "pure fabrication and malicious slander".

In one of the messages shared by Mr Cash to the BBC, Mr Berry can be heard describing in detail a meeting with a Chinese official over a voice message to Mr Cash, which he described as "like a psychological game of chess".

At the time of the meeting, Boris Johnson had just resigned as prime minister. In the messages, Mr Berry recalls the senior official asking "about the situation in the UK at the moment, about the Tory leadership thing".

Mr Berry then jokes he asked the senior official which candidate they wanted, but the official did not understand the question.

"And then the main guy just shakes my hand like it's time to go," he added.

A seemingly dumbfounded Mr Cash responded to his friend at the time "You, my friend, have just been elite captured", before adding: "You're in spy territory now".

Mr Cash insisted it was a "tongue-in-cheek joke" as he thought Mr Berry was a "staunch critic of the Chinese Communist Party".

The friends also shared various messages "off the record". They continue to deny any wrongdoing and there is no evidence either individual passed any information on to Chinese officials.

$\u200bChristopher Berry has worked in China in various positions since 2015$

The men were arrested in March 2023 and then charged in April 2024. By September 2025, charges against both men had been rescinded.

The Home Office said at the time it was "disappointing they will not face trial given the seriousness of the allegations".

Since the charges were dropped, Mr Cash revealed he has broken off all contact with Mr Berry. He has been having trouble even when applying for basic admin jobs.

Mr Cash said it would be "wrong of me to speculate" whether Mr Berry did pass any information to senior Chinese officials but insisted he is "positive about what the future holds".

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