Sir Richard Dearlove, the former head of MI6, has warned MPs and peers that China could bring the UK to a "complete standstill" by exploiting Britain's growing dependence on Chinese steel and technology used in the power grid. Speaking in Parliament, he said such dependencies give Beijing "strategic leverage" in peacetime and "weapons of mass disruption" in a crisis, since the raw materials needed to build and maintain grid infrastructure are concentrated in the hands of a country MI5's director general has already identified as the UK's foremost national security threat.

Dearlove argued that Britain's "complacent deindustrialisation" has left it exposed, as China has expanded its share of global steel exports while the UK's industrial base has shrunk — a dynamic highlighted last year when Chinese owner Jingye attempted to close blast furnaces at British Steel's Scunthorpe plant. His remarks came a day after Andy Burnham held his first call with President Xi Jinping since becoming Prime Minister, in which Downing Street said the two committed to a "long-term and consistent comprehensive strategic partnership." Shadow minister Alicia Kearns accused Labour of leaving Britain "less resilient and less safe," while Labour MPs Graeme Downie and Luke Akehurst said the warning about Chinese dependency should be taken seriously.