Minister to amend record after suggesting block on China genomics ‘engagement’

A minister will correct the record after she appeared to suggest a block on China bankrolling the UK genomics supply chain.

Taking a question about the Chinese Communist Party’s influence on genomics, Cabinet Office minister Abena Oppong-Asare said: “We will ban China in terms of their economic engagement and make sure we strengthen our national security.”

But Ms Oppong-Asare will correct the record after she misspoke on Thursday, the PA news agency understands.

She had meant to say: “We will balance China in terms of economic engagement and making sure we strengthen our national security.”

Conservative shadow paymaster general John Glen had asked: “National security experts have been warning about Chinese Communist Party’s use of genomics companies to harvest DNA data globally and dominate the genomics industry supply chain.

“Given the increasing importance of genomics for public healthcare and the potential dual-use application of this technology, will the minister confirm if her department is conducting a risk assessment on the data privacy, national security and ethical risks posed by genomics companies linked to systemic competitors?”

A US National Counterintelligence and Security Centre document from 2021 described personal data, including genomic data, as a “strategic commodity” to China.

US legislators are now considering the BIOSECURE Act Bill, designed to block organisations which receive federal funds from using “biotechnology that is from a company associated with a foreign adversary”.

Mr Glen confirmed when he was in government that “significant work related to national security is being conducted” in relation to a genomics company with alleged Chinese links, in a leaked letter previously seen by PA.

Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster Pat McFadden filed a written statement on Thursday as he vowed to “ensure that we have the capabilities we need to protect the public from a spectrum of biological threats, no matter how they occur and no matter who or what they affect”.

Mr McFadden said the 2023 UK Biological Security Strategy had “delivered impact across short, medium and longer term commitments”, including a new UK Biosecurity Leadership Council, a US-UK Strategic Dialogue on Biological Security to reflect a “shared ambition and approach to protect against a growing and diverse spectrum of biological threats”, and “system-wide leadership across the UK including by establishing a lead minister, senior responsible owner and a dedicated team in the Cabinet Office”.