Who is alleged Chinese spy linked to Prince Andrew?

Yang Tengbo has been recognized because the 50-year-old Chinese language businessman and alleged spy banned from the UK.

UK authorities have alleged he formed an “unusual degree of trust” with Prince Andrew and developed relationships with politicians to be “leveraged” by China.

Particulars of the allegations towards Mr Yang got here to gentle final week when a Particular Immigration Appeals Tribunal upheld a Residence Workplace order banning him from the UK on nationwide safety grounds following a long-running authorized battle.

Mr Yang had beforehand solely been recognized as H6 – at his personal request the order suppressing his identification was lifted on Monday.

He has mentioned the allegation he’s a spy is “fully unfaithful” and denied doing something illegal.

Yang Tengbo, often known as Chris Yang, was born within the south-western Chinese language province of Yunnan in 1974. He graduated from Yunnan College with a level in archival science in 1995, earlier than working at a “state establishment” for seven years, he instructed BBC Chinese language in 2005.

He ultimately realised he wanted to achieve extra data about public administration and administration, which led him to check overseas, he mentioned within the interview.

Mr Yang first got here to the UK in 2002 and studied in London for a yr, earlier than taking a masters diploma in public administration and public coverage on the College of York.

In 2005 he based consultancy agency Hampton Group Worldwide – one in all 5 firms he has been publicly listed as a director of within the UK.

On 21 Might 2013 he was granted indefinite go away to stay within the UK. He instructed the tribunal that he spent as much as two weeks within the UK every month on common previous to the pandemic.

In response to Chinese language media studies, Mr Yang, who can be government chairman of UK Chinese language Enterprise Affiliation, has served as a “bridge” between companies in each international locations, serving to firms entry one another’s markets.

After his identification was disclosed, he described the UK as his “second dwelling” and mentioned he “would by no means do something to hurt” it.

Like many profitable figures in China, he’s additionally concerned in official occasions related to the federal government. Lately, he has attended conferences held by the Chinese language Folks’s Political Consultative Convention, an advisory physique central to the nation’s United Entrance system, the place he has voiced help for China’s financial and worldwide standing as an abroad neighborhood representitve.

On 6 November 2021, Mr Yang was stopped on the UK border for causes which haven’t been made public. He surrendered his telephone and different digital units.

In February 2022, he filed a authorized declare to cease the UK authorities from retaining his information – a bid he first received after which misplaced on enchantment.

He was then instructed UK authorities believed he was related to the United Entrance Work Division (UFWD) – the arm of the Chinese language authorities that organises Beijing’s cultural affect operations.

The UFWD has been linked to a number of instances of alleged Chinese language state interference in Western international locations and researchers say it usually works to attempt to co-opt professional Chinese language enterprise and neighborhood teams in international international locations.

A yr later, Mr Yang was “off-boarded” from a flight to London as he was coming back from Beijing. He was instructed the UK was within the course of of constructing a call to bar him.

Mr Yang’s legal professionals requested the federal government to reveal the allegations towards him and for a possibility to make his case.

On 15 March 2023, then Residence Secretary Suella Braverman ordered the cancellation of Mr Yang’s residency rights. She banned him from the UK as a result of it might be “conducive to the general public good”.

Mr Yang was knowledgeable of this on 23 March 2023 and he launched a authorized problem shortly after.

A number of the proof which knowledgeable the Residence Workplace’s choice to ban Mr Yang was included in a court ruling upholding the choice revealed final week.

Authorities relied on information discovered on Mr Yang’s units when he was stopped in 2021, together with paperwork which UK authorities mentioned indicated a hyperlink with the UFWD and different Beijing-linked teams.

UK authorities argued these confirmed he was “steadily linked to officers linked with the Chinese language state”. In addition they mentioned he had “generally intentionally obscured” his hyperlinks to the Chinese language authorities, the Chinese language Communist Social gathering and the UFWD, and alleged there was a “misleading factor” to his account.

The Residence Workplace additionally argued that although Mr Yang mentioned he hadn’t obtained direct orders to intrude with UK pursuits, “these in his place might be anticipated to grasp UFWD and CCP goals” and “proactively interact in them with out being tasked”.

In addition they pointed to Mr Yang’s membership of the London-based 48 Group Membership, which promotes commerce between the UK and China. Safety officers argued Mr Yang’s honorary membership might be leveraged for political interference functions by Beijing.

In a response to the US-funded Radio Free Asia, the 48 Group Membership mentioned Mr Yang was by no means actively concerned the working of the group.

Whereas the tribunal dominated there was not an “abundance” of proof towards Mr Yang in some cases, and mentioned there could also be an “harmless rationalization” in others, it in the end determined there was “ample” materials to justify MI5’s conclusion that he posed a safety danger.

Mr Yang mentioned he’ll enchantment towards the ruling.

Watch: ‘China’s Magic Weapon’, a 2021 documentary on China’s efforts to expand its influence in the West.

His most seen connection to the prince is Pitch@Palace, a challenge arrange by the prince that goals to help entrepreneurs.

Mr Yang is recognised as a key determine in launching its Chinese language model – Pitch@Palace China – which additionally received backing from the Chinese language authorities.

UK authorities found a letter from Dominic Hampshire, a senior adviser to Prince Andrew, who mentioned Mr Yang might act on behalf of the prince in engagements with potential traders in China.

Mr Hampshire additionally instructed Mr Yang in a letter: “Exterior of [the prince’s] closest inside confidants, you sit on the very prime of a tree that many, many individuals want to be on.”

It’s unclear if this was a real assertion put ahead by Mr Hampshire, who has not spoken publicly since being named within the ruling.

However the Residence Workplace assessed this as proof that Mr Yang was able to “generate relationships between outstanding UK figures and senior Chinese language officers” which “might be leveraged for political interference functions” by Beijing.

Prince Andrew mentioned he “ceased all contact” with Mr Yang after receiving recommendation from the federal government, however didn’t specify when communication stopped. His workplace mentioned they met “by official channels” and there was “nothing of a delicate nature ever mentioned”.

Mr Yang has strongly denied the allegations towards him. In his first submission to the tribunal, he mentioned he had no connections to anybody in politics in China, had by no means been a member of the Chinese language Communist Social gathering and had by no means carried out actions on its behalf for the UFWD.

In additional submissions, he additionally mentioned he solely had restricted hyperlinks to the Chinese language state and that “contact with the UFWD is unavoidable”.

Mr Yang mentioned he had change into a sufferer of a brand new political local weather through which the UK has hardened its views in the direction of China.

“When relations are good, and Chinese language funding is sought, I’m welcome within the UK. When relations bitter, an anti-China stance is taken, and I’m excluded,” Mr Yang mentioned.

A Beijing international ministry spokesperson mentioned on Monday “it isn’t value refuting this sort of unjust hype”, including to an announcement final week which mentioned “some people within the UK are all the time desperate to fabricate baseless ‘spy’ tales concentrating on China”.

With reporting by BBC Confirm and Fan Wang