A Chinese businessman, who had established significant connections with Prince Andrew and was authorised to represent him in seeking investors in China, has been barred from entering Britain due to national security concerns.
The individual referred to only as H6, was removed from a flight from Beijing to London in February 2023, according to Reuters. He was subsequently informed that Britain intended to prohibit his entry, a decision that was enforced the following month.
H6 challenged the ban at the Special Immigration Appeals Commission (SIAC), but his appeal was dismissed in a written decision on Thursday. This ruling is the first public disclosure of his association with Prince Andrew.
Buckingham Palace, which ceased commenting on matters related to Andrew after he was relieved of his royal duties in 2022, did not provide a statement.
The decision to ban the Chinese businessman followed the examination of his phone, which was seized under counter-terrorism laws at a UK border in 2021. The ruling indicated that the phone’s contents showed Prince Andrew had authorised him to establish an international financial project aimed at engaging with potential Chinese partners and investors. The nature of this financial initiative was not specified in the ruling.
Documents found on H6’s phone indicated that he had deliberately obscured his connections with the Chinese Communist Party and the United Front Work Department. The ruling suggested that H6 had been positioned to forge relationships between prominent UK individuals and senior Chinese officials, relationships that Beijing could exploit.
The United Front Work Department is a network of organisations that Chinese leader Xi Jinping has described as a “magic weapon” to extend Beijing’s influence abroad.
Frances Ibiefo
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