Boris Johnson’s new spin chief asked if the PM’s chief of staff could “nudge” ministers on behalf of controversial Chinese tech giant Huawei, it has emerged.
Long-time ally Guto Harri resigned from Hawthorn Advisors this week to become Downing Street’s Director of Communications, after previous holder Jack Doyle quit over Partygate.
But the lobbying firm had Huawei as a client when he worked there, with reports claiming he was closely involved.
On Monday the PM’s spokesman said he was “not aware of any” meetings between Mr Harri and Boris Johnson personally in the lobbyist’s previous job.
But asked if the PM’s “team” had had any meetings with Mr Harri, the spokesman dodged the question, saying: “Any such meetings that would require to be reported, we would do so in the normal way, but I don’t have a list for individual members.”
Now leaked minutes reveal Mr Harri met with No10’s then-Chief of Staff Sir Eddie Lister on 2 June 2020 in a 25-minute video call.
According to minutes of the meeting seen by The Sun, he asked: “Any ministers we should talk to? Perhaps give a nudge in DCMS or Treasury?”
Downing Street confirmed the meeting today, with Boris Johnson's spokesman saying: "My understand is that there was a meeting that took place with Huawei and No10 officials, that’s within the rules. Obviously we met with a number of interested parties at that time, while that discussion was taking place, and that was in full compliance with the guidance…
“We then took the decision… to effectively end Huawei’s role within the UK in terms of security.”
Huawei technology will be stripped from the UK's 5G network by 2027 after a Government U-turn in 2020.
Ministers initially said Huawei could play a limited role in the broadband infrastructure, but abandoned the plan following pressure from Washington.
MPs claimed in October 2020 that there was “clear evidence of collusion” between Huawei and the “Chinese Communist Party apparatus”. Huawei denies the claims.
Minutes suggested Sir Eddie said Mr Johnson did not want to ban the firm, but was "caught" between two places.
"We want the technology, we want it rolled out. There's an American concern and a parliamentary concern," he reportedly said.
"There are a large number of MPs across the political divide who have a problem with China. Some are Atlanticists, some over Covid, some over Hong Kong, some over human rights."
The Prime Minister's official spokesman defended Mr Harri's appointment on Monday, saying: "He provided advice to the clients of a private company.
"That's entirely legitimate, it's in the public domain and obviously we would not exclude from Government someone with valuable experience and expertise."
But No10 dodged questions on whether Mr Harri had fully passed security checks yet.
The PM’s spokesman said: “Any requisite security measures needed to ensure he can start work in No10 have been undertaken.” But asked if they've actually been completed he replied: “I can’t comment on an individual”.
One government source claimed it could take five months to get the highest-level clearance.
And ex-aide Dominic Cummings responded on Twitter : “To access e.g STRAP3 docs on Huawei, you need to go through 'developed vetting' (DV).
“This usually takes months. even when accelerated - weeks. there is *no way* this happened between Friday pm & Monday for Huawei Hari. no10 lying again.”
The PM’s spokesman said certain applications “can be prioritised” to be dealt with faster, but “broadly” someone who’d previously worked in City Hall would not be pre-cleared for No10.
The spokesman said: “It’s accurate to say that any individual would be unable to access sensitive documents or information without the requisite security.”
Mr Harri took over No 10's spin operation following the departure of Jack Doyle, who told aides the Partygate row had taken a "terrible toll" on his family life.
