Scots universities on red alert over Chinese and Russian spies after rare MI5 briefing while ...

Scots universities are on red alert to the threat of Russian and Chinese spies following a rare intervention by MI5. The Security Service brought higher education leaders together to urge them to be aware of the risk of espionage from hostile states who may be active in universities.

It prompted Tertiary Education Minister Alyn Smith to write to every institution in Scotland to urge them to be careful in their dealings with foreign powers. Universities were warned working with the China General Technology Research Institute (CGTRI), which is a front company working for China's intelligence and security service.

There is a huge Chinese contingent of students in Glasgow , attending Glasgow University. It didn't respond to requests for whether it had links to the company, but Strathclyde confirmed it was "reviewing" its business with the hostile organisation.

The Scottish Government want more Chinese investment in Scotland, even against national security advice . It is lobbying the UK Government to allow Ming Yang, which has links to the ruling Chinese Communist Party, to build a wind turbines factory in the Highlands.

Mr Smith confirmed he had been in with universities . He said: "I am saying the Scottish Government takes this very seriously, and the wider risk of espionage on campus is significant. We would like a reassurance that they are taking this seriously and have procedures that keep them alive to this.

“There is a ramped up awareness that we are seeing a number of organisations being more averse the risk of cyber disruption, the risk of malfeasance in our communications networks, research networks, and there's a lot of vulnerabilities which we need to be better on our toes protecting. Universities are obviously so globally interconnected, we need to make sure that everybody is aware of the risks."

While the initial MI5 briefing only mentioned China, his note mentioned other espionage from the likes of Russia. The Security Service found that more than 100 UK-linked academics had contributed to projects funded by Ministry of State Security via CGTRI. The briefing was described as a "very unusual" move by Edinburgh University Principal Sir Peter Mathieson as it was the first such briefing in his five years in the national security role.

He told the Scotsman: "They were clearly very concerned this particular institute and very confident that the information they had it was correct...They said if you are working with this institute or you're planning to, we would recommend that you take legal advice your compliance with the National Security Act. So, it was quite a strongly worded and quite a pointed warning.”

Mr Smith's letter, entitled MI5 Espionage Alert – The China General Technology Research Institute, tells Vice-Chancellors: “While Scottish universities are autonomous institutions, and national security is reserved to the UK Government, we see a clear role in both actively seeking assurance and monitoring emerging risks through the SFC, consistent with the commitments set out in our International Education Strategy.”

In response to the MI5 briefing, a spokesman for the Chinese Embassy in London said the accusation was "imaginary and purely fabricated".

According to university figures from 2024, China became now the second most common domicile for students at Scottish universities , ahead of Edinburgh and every other Scottish council area bar Glasgow. More than one in 15 students is from China, with these mainly living in Scotland's two biggest cities.