Families face new cash crunch if China invades Taiwan, warns top Tory... as Nvidia honeypot 'lays bare Beijing's lust for tech supremacy'

Labour's weakness in the face of aggressive Chinese expansionism could see Brits get hammered by a massive cost-of-living surge if Beijing succeeds in annexing Taiwan, a top Tory warns today.Shadow defence minister David Reed attacked the slow pace of rearming the UK's military and intelligence apparatus and the Government's unwillingness to take a hard line with the Asian superpower.Taiwan is a major power in electronics and produces 90 per cent of the world's most advanced semi conductor chips, used in smartphones and computers.Additionally the Taiwan Strait is one of the world's busiest shipping routes and China's repeated threats to seize an island it considers part of its territory is causing major alarm bells to ring in the West.Writing for the Mail today Mr Reed said the UK needed to take the threat more seriously, despite pressing threats closer to home, with control of Taiwan and the strait giving it 'unimaginable control of any nation's economy'.The former Royal Marine and special forces operative said the Nvidia 'honeypot' scandal in the US, where the founder of the eponymous tech firm admitted an affair with an alleged Chinese spy, showed the lengths Beijing was willing to go to to achieve global supremacy. Shadow defence minister David Reed attacked the slow pace of rearming the UK's military and intelligence apparatus and the government's unwillingness to take a hard line with the Asian superpower China refuses to talk to Taiwan President Lai Ching-te, saying he is a 'separatist,' and its military operates around the island on a daily basis Taiwan is a major power in electronics and produces 90 per cent of the world's most advanced semi conductor chips, used in smartphones and computers'Britain relies on these global supply chains for everything — from smartphones and cars to medical equipment, artificial intelligence and advanced weapons,' he said.'Imagine that supply suddenly disappearing. Factories would halt production. Consumer goods would become scarce. 'Inflation would surge — putting renewed pressure on mortgages, household bills and the cost of living.'Then imagine if China is successful, and takes complete control of the world's semiconductor production. They would have unimaginable control of any nation's economy.' He added: 'Britain cannot stand idly by. But we have to be honest: we are not in a position to stand with Taiwan against Chinese aggression.'Our Armed Forces are dangerously stretched and continue to be underfunded by Labour, who have chosen benefit handouts over our national security.'Earlier this month a report by MPs warned that the Government is 'making up its China policy as it goes', exposing the UK to both economic and national security risks, MPs have warned in a new report. Nvidia and its chief executive Jensen Huang face mounting scrutiny in Washington after he confessed to carrying out an affair with a Chinese entrepreneur, Alice Huang, who has been under investigation for spyingIn a 102-page document published on Monday, the Business, Innovation, Science and Trade Committee (Bist) accused the Labour government of failing to deliver on its 2024 promise to implement a 'strategic, long-term, consistent' approach to China.The report said the Government's track record of decisions regarding Beijing – such as the last-minute blocking of plans by Chinese firm Ming Yang to build a wind turbine factory in Scotland over security concerns – was characterised by 'reactivity, inconsistency, and opacity'.It also warned of a tendency to 'prioritise diplomatic politeness' over the UK's national security, exposing the country to 'unquantified, unmanaged risk' – including the transfer of sensitive data and technologies, and economic dependence on Chinese supply chains.The lack of clear guidance hinders UK businesses' ability to make commercial decisions about the Chinese market, the report also highlighted.Relations between Taipei and Beijing are extremely tense. China refuses to talk to Taiwan President Lai Ching-te, saying he is a 'separatist,' and its military operates around the island on a daily basis.It claims the island as it was the last refuge of the Nationalist Chinese after the communist takeover of the country in 1949.Taiwan's democratically elected government rejects Beijing's sovereignty claims, saying only the island's people can decide their future. Neither government formally recognizes the other. Nvidia and its chief executive Jensen Huang face mounting scrutiny in Washington over his lobbying for looser restrictions on sales of AI chips to China, following reports alleging he was targeted by a Chinese spying operation.Huang, 63, confessed in a memo to his staff on Sunday to carrying out an affair with a Chinese entrepreneur, Alice Huang, who has been under investigation for allegedly passing information to Beijing.She was a senior executive at a Singapore-based company that was buying Nvidia's advanced AI chips.The extramarital relationship raised security concerns after US intelligence assessed that the woman, was delivering information to the Beijing government.Chinese control of Taiwan would give Beijing unimaginable control of any nation's economyListening to Remembrance services this weekend, I was reminded of the horrors of the two World Wars.My father was born during the Blitz. Yet even for my generation, those conflicts seem to increasingly belong in history rather than at the forefront of our minds.We have enjoyed a period of relative peace and prosperity, underpinned by US military dominance and ultimately underwritten by the American taxpayer.That security has allowed global trade to flourish, delivering choice and economic prosperity — with goods manufactured thousands of miles away arriving on our doorsteps at the click of a button.But those delivering Remembrance sermons are right to warn that our world is becoming increasingly dangerous.War has returned to Europe. The Iranian 'Axis of resistance' spreads hatred and terror across the Middle East and beyond, while civil wars break out across Africa. All this is felt here at home, through rising energy prices and disrupted supply chains — reminding us how fragile our prosperity really is.Further East, there is another potential conflict that threatens to send shockwaves through our economy and upend the global political landscape as we know it.China looks covetously at Taiwan — a country which has long been seen as an example of what a democratic China could look like. The Chinese Communist Party views Taiwan as a direct challenge to its authority and has long wished to silence it.Some analysts fear China is preparing for an invasion, perhaps even imminently. Others believe a naval blockade is more likely. Either scenario could have catastrophic economic consequences for the UK.The stretch of water separating Taiwan from mainland China — the Taiwan Strait — is one of the most important trade routes on Earth. More than $2.4trillion of goods passed through the Taiwan Strait in 2024, approximately 21 per cent of all global maritime trade.Then there are the semiconductors. Taiwan produces more than 90 per cent of the world's most advanced chips, with its technological giant TSMC at the centre of production. Just this week, the honeypot scandal proved how desperate China is to get its hands on this technology.Britain relies on these global supply chains for everything — from smartphones and cars to medical equipment, artificial intelligence and advanced weapons.Imagine that supply suddenly disappearing. Factories would halt production. Consumer goods would become scarce. Inflation would surge — putting renewed pressure on mortgages, household bills and the cost of living.Then imagine if China is successful, and takes complete control of the world's semiconductor production. They would have unimaginable control of any nation's economy.Britain cannot stand idly by. But we have to be honest: we are not in a position to stand with Taiwan against Chinese aggression.Our Armed Forces are dangerously stretched and continue to be underfunded by Labour, who have chosen benefit handouts over our national security.When the Iran war erupted in February, Britain struggled to deploy even a single Royal Navy destroyer to help protect our military personnel and bases in Cyprus. In fact, HMS Dragon did not sail from Portsmouth until 10 ten days after the fighting began.Britain has always stood up to dictators, tyranny, and those who seek to spread hatred and division across the world. We must do so once again.That means we must act before China strikes, not scramble and panic afterwards. As a recent Parliamentary report said, too often we have relied on a last-gasp response to China. How many times must we be warned of the threat from China before we act?Firstly, we need to properly fund the defence of our nation. The Conservatives have set out a fully-costed plan to spend 3 per cent of GDP on defence by 2030. But this Labour Government continues to drag its feet on defence.Without a clear plan to fund the defence of our nation, Andy Burnham is putting us in danger.And without fully backed military and intelligence services, we will be unable to stop China's colonisation of Taiwan.The UK must strengthen diplomatic efforts to deter Chinese aggression and improve our own national resilience by reducing our economic reliance on China.Too often Miliband has chosen China over our allies, leaving us more reliant on one of the greatest threats to democracy. Labour must wake up to the threat that China poses and stop treating Taiwan as an occasional foreign policy footnote.So as we reflect on the Remembrance services we attended over the weekend, and honour the sacrifices of our forefathers, we should remember that peace and democracy are precious, fragile and never guaranteed.The era in which we could take global stability for granted is over, and to protect Britain we must prove we are ready.David Reed is the Conservative MP for Exmouth and Exeter East and the shadow minister for defence, security and resilience