Alleged Chinese spy had ‘unusual degree of trust’ with Andrew

An alleged Chinese spy who formed an “unusual degree of trust” with the Duke of York has been banned from the UK, after a judgement by the UK’s semi-secret national security court.

The man, known only as H6 and described as a “close confidant” to Prince Andrew, brought an appeal against his initial ban but the decision was upheld by the court.

Judges were told the businessman was attempting to leverage Prince Andrew’s influence.

Buckingham Palace declined to comment, saying they do not act for the prince, who is not a working royal.

In March 2023 H6 brought his case to the Special Immigration Appeals Commission, a court set up to consider appeals against decisions to ban or remove someone from the country on national security or related grounds.

In the published ruling, the judge said that the then-home secretary, Suella Braverman, was “entitled to conclude that [H6] represented a risk to the national security of the United Kingdom, and that she was entitled to conclude that his exclusion was justified and proportionate”.

The ruling makes clear that the man had been subjected to the highest levels of national security investigation as someone that the UK’s intelligence agencies feared was seeking influence over a member of the Royal Family.

The court was told that H6 was invited to Prince Andrew’s birthday party in 2020 and was told he could act on his behalf when dealing with potential investors in China.

It’s not clear how H6 became close to the Prince, but in November 2021 police officers stopped and questioned him at the UK border under powers to investigate suspicions of “hostile activity” by a foreign state.