Name of Prince Andrew's alleged Chinese spy friend made public

Prince Andrew is facing fresh controversy over his relationship with an alleged spy from China.

Although the man's name had so far been kept anonymous, The Telegraph reported that he has been identified as Yang Tengbo. The news came after the High Court dismissed Yang Tengbo's attempt to keep his identity secret.

"Yang, 50 – who was banned from entering Britain on national security grounds – can now be revealed to be behind Hampton Group International, a lobbying firm that has extensive links to China," explained The Telegraph upon learning of the information.

Furthermore, the identity was revealed following political pressure to make it public. In fact, M.P. Richard Tice threatened to bring Yang before the House of Commons using parliamentary privilege.

In that connection, it emerged that Yang worked as a junior civil servant in China before moving to York. There, he graduated with a master's degree in public administration.

"In 2005, Yang established a strategy advisory company to help company bosses in Beijing to network internationally," The Telegraph highlighted.

Similarly, it was learned that he was a central figure in the organization of the first U.K.-China Business Leaders Summit. According to media reports, at the event he was seen accompanied by George Osborne, the then chancellor of the exchequer.

On his relationship with Andrew, reports note that it began in 2016, the same year the prince launched Pitch@Palace China, two years after founding the Dragons Den-style initiative in the U.K.

The alleged spy's relationship with Prince Andrew involved an invitation to his birthday party in 2020, a hearing in July revealed, which further emphasized that the defendant had permission to act on behalf of the Duke of York in pursuit of Chinese investors.

A London court last week upheld a decision made by British authorities in 2023 to ban Yang from entering the country.

The Home Office considered at the time that this individual was involved in secret and deceptive activities on behalf of the Communist Party of China and posed a threat to national security, AFP recalled.

The judges found that Tengbo, known in court documents as H6, could facilitate relationships between senior Chinese officials and British personalities that could be used by Chinese authorities.