Prince Andrew demanded a face-to-face assembly with MI5 Director Normal Sir Ken McCallum following the spy scandal, it has emerged.
The Duke of York sought the weird assembly to study extra about safety issues surrounding Yang Tengbo, his shut confidant.
Yang, who denies being a spy, was banned from the UK after an MI5 investigation.
The assembly was agreed to by Sir Ken and scheduled for June final 12 months.
Nevertheless, Sir Ken cancelled the assembly on the final minute after Rishi Sunak referred to as a shock basic election.
The MI5 chief is known to have withdrawn from the appointment because the election required his full consideration.
The assembly was by no means rearranged, and the 2 males didn’t meet.
Any such assembly would have been extremely uncommon provided that Yang, a good friend and enterprise companion of the Duke, was underneath investigation by the home intelligence service.
The Duke reportedly held the best safety clearance regardless of stepping again as a working royal.
Yang was an in depth affiliate of Prince Andrew, described in courtroom paperwork as being "on the high of the tree" among the many Duke's "closest inside confidants".
The Chinese language businessman was first detained at a British airport in late 2021, the place he surrendered his cell phone and different units.
In March 2023, then Residence Secretary Suella Braverman barred Yang from re-entering the UK.
Yang appealed this choice, however his attraction was rejected by the Particular Immigration Appeals Fee.
Particulars of the case had been solely made public on the finish of final 12 months.
The Telegraph may reveal that Sir Ken held a briefing with Sir Edward Younger, the late Queen's personal secretary, on the peak of the investigation into Yang.
This assembly happened at Buckingham Palace in December 2021.
Throughout this briefing, Sir Ken outlined MI5's issues over Prince Andrew's rising friendship with Yang.
Messages discovered on Yang's units revealed he had been invited to the Duke's sixtieth celebration.
Prince Andrew's request for a gathering with Sir Ken got here greater than two years after Yang was first detained and simply over a 12 months after he was barred from the UK.
It’s understood Prince Andrew was by no means formally suggested by the safety companies or Buckingham Palace to sever contact with Yang.
The Duke reportedly felt he was being saved at nighttime about MI5's issues concerning his affiliate.
In line with courtroom paperwork, the Duke ultimately distanced himself from Yang on the recommendation of Dominic Hampshire, his then-senior adviser.