MI5 attorney warns tribunal about predicted outcomes of Christine Lee’s actions

Representing MI5 at the tribunal, a lawyer stated that it was entirely “foreseeable” for Christine Lee, a suspected Chinese agent, to attract the attention of British intelligence and have her actions disclosed to the public.

In January 2022, MI5 issued an interference alert against Ms. Lee, suspecting her of engaging in “political interference activities” on behalf of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

Lee’s legal team argued that her actions, which included meeting Chinese officials and criticizing Hong Kong protesters for using violence, were not meant to violate national security measures.

Victoria Wakefield, representing MI5, emphasized that engaging in such conduct was likely to bring Lee to the attention of the Security Service.

Wakefield stated that issuing the interference alert was necessary to address the threat posed by Lee’s activities, which MI5 assessed as endangering national security.

She further revealed that information linking Lee to the United Front Work Department had been in the public domain before the alert was issued.

MI5’s actions were deemed essential to protect national security and did not violate Lee’s rights under Article 3 or Article 8 of the European Convention of Human Rights.

‘Most Effective Means to Address the Threat’

Ms. Wakefield argued that the interference alert was proportionate in a democratic society and necessary to mitigate the risk to national security posed by Lee’s activities.

Lee and her son have challenged the interference alert as unlawful and a breach of their human rights, taking their claim to the Investigatory Powers Tribunal.

Lord Justice Singh, sitting with Lord Boyd and Judge Rupert Jones, announced that they would reserve judgment until later this year.