UK must act on Chinese bioscience threat, says Sir Iain Duncan Smith

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China could use UK genetic data to create targeted biological weapons, a former Tory minister has claimed.

Sir Iain Duncan Smith urged the government to follow the steps taken by the United States and take action against Chinese bioscience companies, drawing comparisons with the action against telecommunications company Huawei.

The warning from the former Conservative minister was echoed by Labor's Fabian Hamilton, who separately warned of the risks of opening up Britain's genomic data. against its global rivals.

Once again, the UK's position in this debate is dire. Last year the Government admitted that BGI was a “danger spot” in the UK's science and technology ecosystem, but it continues to allow BGI access to our genomics sector.

Sir Iain Duncan Smith

Genomics, the study of DNA as a dataset is a growing area of ​​medical technology and is used to predict, diagnose and treat disease in new ways.

Writing in The Telegraph, Sir Iain warned it could have more sinister uses.

"Like other advanced technologies, genomics, when it is used legitimately, can help create new drugs to fight diseases like cancer," he wrote, adding: "However, its dual-use potential means it can also be used to create biological weapons or targeted pathogens.

MPs including Sir Iain have previously warned that Chinese genomics giant BGI Group could pose a danger to UK interests, and the company has been blacklisted in the United States due to security concerns.

American lawmakers are currently trying to restrict access to American genomic data to companies they suspect of having links to Hostile foreign states.

BGI, which won Covid-related contracts from the UK government during the pandemic, denies having links. to the government in Beijing.

Sir Iain said: “Once again, the UK's position in this debate is confused. Last year the Government admitted that BGI was a “danger spot” in the UK’s science and technology ecosystem, but it continues to allow BGI access to our genomics sector. »

He said this echoes the “weakness he has shown”. facing Huawei and Hikvision, we risk repeating the mistakes of the past if we fail to appreciate the seriousness of the challenge.”