Banning Chinese and Russians from security jobs ‘not racist', tribunal rules

Telegraph

19 hours ago

Banning Chinese and Russians from working in sensitive national security areas in the UK is not racist because they might be spies, a tribunal has ruled.
It is not discriminatory to stop people from nations that pose a threat to Britain taking up certain jobs in the defence sector due to the possibility of espionage, the judgment suggested.
The precautionary measure applies to potential job candidates from China, Russia, North Korea and Iran.
The ruling comes after a Chinese scientist sued a British artificial intelligence (AI) company with ties to the UK and US defence departments when she was not given a job due to security concerns.
Tianlin Xu applied for a £220,000 lead AI role at Binary AI, but the software company's technology boss James Patrick-Evans had to reject her. There is no suggestion that Ms Xu is a spy.
Mr Patrick-Evans' start-up uses AI to identify flaws in software used by Western governments to prevent state-backed hackers from the likes of China and Russia targeting them.
The 32-year-old was 'strongly advised against hiring a Chinese national' by top defence officials that he worked with, it was heard.
Chinese people – like Ms Xu – would not get security clearance from governments in order to carry out the work, it was said.
Ms Xu tried to sue Binary AI on grounds of race discrimination, claiming it was 'racial stigma' and 'stereotyping'.
But the tribunal dismissed her claims after hearing evidence of the security concerns.
The employment judge Richard Baty said in his judgment: 'It is paramount that the security and operational capability of the software that drives our everyday lives should remain intact and free from malicious hackers and state actors wanting to persuade political outcomes or obtain sensitive information.
'The UK government and its Western allies that form the Five Eyes alliance have been under constant attack by many of these malicious groups, mainly from state-backed hacking groups from countries such as North Korea, Russia, China and Iran.
'These hacking groups have tried to obtain a 'back door' or malicious remote access into software that forms the backbone of UK infrastructure such as 5G telecoms, NHS health networks, power plant controllers and water infrastructure systems.
'It is therefore imperative that the security of the software that drives these systems is verified, controlled and secured.'