China is looking to harvest health data from British patients which could be used to develop bioweapons, experts have warned.
MPs along with security and biological specialists have raised the alarm about the growth of Chinese medical technology in Britain’s hospitals.
There are fears the hostile state is seeking to ‘weaponise biology’ by capturing sensitive patient data to develop targeted viruses and diseases.
The terrifying warning comes as hospitals in Britain are becoming increasingly reliant on critical equipment from China which monitors patient data.
One Shenzhen firm with a UK base in Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire, has dramatically expanded in Europe and Britain where it employs over 100 staff.
Mindray has recently secured contracts with over 600 teaching hospitals across Europe, including over 50 NHS contracts with hospitals all over Britain to supply critical equipment including monitoring, anaesthesia, ventilation, and ultrasound instruments.
Chinese Premier Li Qiang visited the firm last August in a powerful sign of approval from the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).
News reports said he encouraged executives to ‘continue working toward the top international level and gain a competitive advantage in the market with their technologies’.
In Britain, Mindray has established its own political links and was the only healthcare company invited to a Downing Street reception with David Cameron when he attempted to boost UK-China trade links in 2013.
There is no suggestion of any wrongdoing by the firm, which insists its bedside diagnostic equipment measuring vital signs such as blood pressure, pulse, oxygen levels and temperature, operates only within a hospital’s own closed, secure IT infrastructure and does not store patient data externally.
But the growing prominence of Chinese medical technology in the NHS and European healthcare has raised concerns about the possibility of large-scale data harvesting which could pose a strategic threat to Britain’s security.
Last year MI5 chief Ken McCallum warned that hostile states like China are ‘laser focused’ on emerging technology like synthetic biology, a scientific field that involves designing or modifying biological systems like a virus to perform new functions.
‘The stakes are now incredibly high on emerging technologies; states which lead the way in areas like artificial intelligence, quantum computing and synthetic biology will have the power to shape all our futures,’ he said.
‘We all need to be aware, and respond, before it’s too late.’
Now Tory shadow Foreign Minister Alicia Kearns has called for more safeguards to ensure British patient data cannot be used by an adversary.
She said: ‘The Chinese Communist Party has no respect for privacy or individual rights. It raids personal information when it wants, and once British data reaches China, we have no way of ensuring it isn’t used for malicious purposes.
‘We must take action to stop British hospitals working with CCP-linked companies. The risk of our data being harvested to manufacture future bioweapons is real.
‘No country would tolerate a foreign state raiding physical copies of patient healthcare records – why should we accept the risk of our most intimate information being stolen digitally?
‘China is the largest genomic data harvester in the world, its goal to be a biotech superpower, but it cannot do that unless it harvests the data from more diverse populations than its own.
‘We’ve already seen the CCP-backed BGI group share data from women’s prenatal tests with the People’s Liberation Army.
‘Do we really want our genetic data and health information being recorded and tampered with by a state hostile to our country? Why do they want it? The question answers itself.’
Hamish de Bretton Gordon, former commanding officer of the UK’s Joint Chemical, Biological and Nuclear Regiment, said the Chinese Government’s activities in biotechnology, particularly in DNA manipulation and synthetic biology, is an escalating security risk.
‘The biological threat is the WMD [weapon of mass destruction] of the future,’ he said.
‘It’s far more dangerous than nuclear or anything else, and it’s something that we really must invest in our security and defence against – otherwise one just has to look at Covid.
‘It’s very clear I think to most of us that the Chinese in laboratories like Wuhan are doing things with biology, synthetic biology, manipulation of DNA which are most likely for nefarious reasons, and the possibility that the Chinese are looking to weaponise biology I think is more likely.’
He went on: ‘What would happen if you managed to synthetically splice Covid with something more deadly? It could be catastrophic.
‘I do not want to be over-dramatic, this sort of activity is getting more into the realms of realism.
‘If you have the intent and capability, which the Chinese appear to have, then this is something we need to guard against and do everything to make sure it cannot manifest itself.
‘So the fact that a Chinese company has so many links in so many medical devices is to me something we should be concerned about.’
Experts believe access to health data could be part of China’s broader, long-term strategy to develop biological capabilities that transcend traditional military or economic geopolitical tactics.
Data security experts are now calling for regulatory scrutiny of foreign-controlled medical devices used in British healthcare, particularly those from China.
Analysts point to parallels with the debate over 5G mobile phone technology, where governments acted decisively to curb Chinese companies’ role in critical networks.
Firms like Mindray have proved popular with budget-conscious healthcare managers by offering clinical technology at a cheaper price.
But former Tory leader Sir Iain Duncan Smith warned that Britain is ignoring China’s most sinister threat yet in the rush to sign deals with Chinese firms undercutting their competitors.
He pointed out that by law, the Chinese government has the authority to access data held by companies operating within China, including for matters of national security.
‘We must protect our genetic data from Chinese scientists, who could use it for targeted bioweapons,’ he said.
Sir Iain said the CCP has already used genomic data to profile ethnic minorities, adding: ‘China is looking to weaponise biology. Why would you want all this data to go back to China? What are going to do with it?
‘The answer is because you want to know of your potential adversaries what their weaknesses are – and that is what is going on.’
He went on: ‘One way or another you can disrupt lives. Healthcare could be the new frontier for China if you possess biological data, genomic data about people in different countries.
‘The power of this is simply not being looked at it. We do need proper scrutiny of these healthcare devices.
‘Hospitals make one decision, which is how much less can I pay if I go with a Chinese supplier? Britain needs to wake up to the fact that China is a threat.’
Mindray tells hospitals it offers a ‘full range of patient monitoring solutions to meet clinical needs ranging from high-acuity critical care to mid-acuity and step-down areas, to the general ward and outpatient clinics’, adding: ‘We connect these solutions with networked systems and compact transport monitors to give you full visibility of patient data.’
Yesterday a spokesman said the firm is a ‘a global developer, manufacturer, and supplier of medical devices’ which has been operating in Britain since 2002 and it adheres to global standards on information security management, data protection and cyber security.
He said: ‘Mindray UK predominantly supplies NHS hospitals with bedside diagnostic equipment, such as vital signs devices, and defibrillators.
‘These devices can measure clinical parameters such as blood pressure, pulse, Spo2 [oxygen saturation], and temperature, and operate within each hospital’s own closed, secure IT infrastructure.
‘Access to, and storage of, all patient data on the above equipment is strictly controlled by NHS Trusts, using their own protected network, therefore Mindray UK does not provide data storage or cloud services for patient data.
‘Mindray UK works closely with NHS Supply Chain (NHSSC) to supply to NHS Trusts. Operating within NHS procurement frameworks requires adherence to stringent standards, including data security and cybersecurity.’
A spokesman for NHS England said: ‘The NHS has strict policies in place for the awarding of contracts, in line with government guidance. Individual NHS organisations must also ensure they meet their legal responsibilities and national data security standards to protect patient data, and we offer them support and training nationally on how this should be done.’
A UK Government spokesman said: ‘We have strict safeguards in place throughout the NHS to prevent the misuse of data.
‘All providers of services which handle patient data in the NHS must protect it in line with the UK GDPR and Data Protection Act 2018.’