LONDON, Feb 9 — Senior members of Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s Conservatives who have demanded Chinese telecoms giant Huawei must not have a role in Britain’s 5G mobile network are conducting "a kind of witch-hunt”, China’s ambassador to London said today.

Last month the government said "high-risk vendors” such as Huawei would be allowed into the non-sensitive parts of the 5G network, although their involvement will be capped at 35 per cent.

Asked about a letter to Conservative lawmakers by several former ministers expressing concern over Huawei, Liu Xiaoming told the BBC: "They are totally wrong, I think what they are doing is a kind of a witch-hunt. Huawei is a private-owned company, nothing to do with the Chinese government and the only problem they have is they are a Chinese company.”

The Chinese government was pleased with Britain’s decision, he added, although not "100 per cent satisfied” because the 35 per cent cap "does not show your principle of a free economy, free competition”. — Reuters