LONDON

The British government has launched an urgent review into foreign financial interference in UK politics in response to the "evolving threat posed by political interference," according to a statement on Tuesday.

An independent review, led by Philip Rycroft, into foreign financial interference in UK politics has been commissioned by the government, said the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government.

According to the statement, it came in response to the "evolving threat posed by political interference to British democracy," including the "shocking cases" of Nathan Gill, former Reform party leader in Wales, and Christine Lee, the UK-based lawyer identified as working covertly on behalf of the Chinese Communist Party.

Gill was convicted last month and sentenced to 10-and-a-half years in prison after he admitted being paid £40,000 ($53,600) for accepting bribes to promote pro-Russian narratives.

As part of the review, which builds on the major reforms announced in the Elections Strategy in July, Rycroft will assess finance and bribery rules and how to reduce the risk of foreign interference.

It also follows the National Protective Security Authority taking the unprecedented step of publishing guidance in October on how members of parliament and their staff can protect themselves from foreign states and their proxies in relation to espionage and foreign interference.

Announcing the review in parliament, Housing Secretary Steve Reed said: "The facts are clear. A British politician took bribes to further the interests of the Russian regime, a regime which forcefully deported vulnerable Ukrainian children and killed a British citizen on British soil using a deadly nerve agent."

For his part, Security Minister Dan Jarvis said that this independent review "will help to strengthen our democracy against covert attempts to interfere with our sovereign affairs."