Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on March 5, 2026
2 min readLast updated: April 1, 2026
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Labour MP Joani Reid’s husband, David Taylor, was arrested under the National Security Act 2023 on suspicion of aiding China’s foreign intelligence service; she has denied any involvement or prior knowledge and has since had the Labour whip suspended.
LONDON, March 5 (Reuters) - British lawmaker Joani Reid was temporarily suspended from the governing Labour Party on Thursday, a day after local media reported that her husband was one of three men arrested on allegations of spying for China.
"Joani Reid has agreed to fully cooperate with the Labour Party's investigation into these matters," a party spokesperson said. Her membership was suspended while the investigation is carried out but she remains a lawmaker in parliament.
In the latest UK accusations of spying by Beijing, police said on Wednesday they had arrested three men on suspicion of assisting China's foreign intelligence service, and local media reported one was the husband of a sitting lawmaker.
In keeping with usual UK police practice, none of those arrested were named.
"This week has been the worst of my life," Reid said in a statement, in which she described the suspension as voluntary.
"I am not under investigation by the police and no accusations have been against me. I have done nothing wrong. I love my country."
(Reporting by William James and Sam Tabahriti in London and Gnaneshwar Rajan in Bengaluru; Editing by Franklin Paul and Cynthia Osterman)
Joani Reid was suspended after her husband was arrested on suspicion of spying for China.
Joani Reid, the Labour lawmaker for the East Kilbride area, is involved.
Joani Reid's husband denies all allegations of spying for China.
Sky News reported the suspension of Joani Reid.
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