Phone the police

In a devil’s advocate manoeuvre, why does Gavin Williamson ( or a supporter) not refer

himself to the police, to force Theresa May and Sir Mark Sedwill into revealing their “compelling evidence” that he leaked secrets about Chinese firm Huawei? No. 10 has apparently conceded the matters discussed were not sensitive enough to be covered by the Official Secrets Act, so it seems no crime was committed and there would be no risk of top- secret information being disclosed in court. After all, the police investigate many other non- crimes.

I know nothing of cybercrime technology and the like, but it seems clear that the attitude of three of our partners in the Five Eyes intelligence group ( USA, Australia and New Zealand, with Canada still considering its stance) is more robust and realistic than Mrs May’s, regarding Huawei and its status in every practical sense vis- à- vis the totalitarian Chinese government.

Is it not an appalling reflection on the UK’S once worldrenowned electronics indust r y and our governments of the past few decades that we seem dependent now on such companies for our basic infrastructure and even security systems, albeit only “at the edge” per some reports? All intruders start at the edge to get inside!

JOHN BIRKETT Horseleys Park, St Andrews