For at least a decade the West’s attitude to China, even at the highest reaches of government, has been willfully blind. We’ve been seduced by the prospect of a large and growing market compared to economic stagnation at home. So we’ve turned a blind eye to numerous danger signals about China’s true intentions.
Oddball characters like Woodley have been allowed to freely associate with their Chinese counterparts and exchange information. I don’t blame him so much as the West’s willful blindness to China’s real intentions.
One of the few positive outcomes of covid is the final unmasking of who and what the CCP really is. Woodley needs to be warned off China, and if he persists he should (finally) face consequences.
David Rose- thank you thank you thank you for bringing this critical case before the public and before the institutions and defense people in charge. This is truly unbelievable. I wish there were more journalists like you who do the important work that needs to be done in this unstable world of today. I feel very helpless when I read this report and all I can do is hope your work reaches the right people.
“I don’t blame him so much as the West’s willful blindness to China’s real intentions.”
I do. “The West” is not an abstraction devoid of individual responsibility. It is a large group of individuals whose decisions guide and determine its future. The willful blindness has many causes and some of them are treasonous. Freedom is not free. It is much, much easier to lose than it is to gain.
So where are the articles about the entire political and capitalist classes. China is powerful because of globalist ideologies that were hegemonic, and still are hegemonic, amongst all the elites. It’s not just some semi retired chump working in a uni.
Last edited 1 year ago by Mr Sketerzen Bhoto
Martin Bollis
1 year ago
Quite apart from the national security issues, this was a disconcerting article.
As a civil engineer, I have sometimes wondered what kind of conversations took place in the design offices of N a z I Germany. Railways and g a s chambers don’t build themselves.
To dedicate an entire career to researching the hi tech destruction of human beings is mind boggling.
Well actually yes. I get that the other side has psychopaths, so we have to have to have them, but the concept of professional success, as a scientist, means dreaming up putting aluminium particles in a shell so more die per shell is deeply creepy.
Mark Burbidge
1 year ago
So Imperial pops up again in relation to the Chinese. Woodley and Fergusson appear to be working as useful idiots for the CCP.
F Hugh Eveleigh
1 year ago
Thank you for writing this. We now know about the work of Mr Woodley and his numerous visits to China, his avoidance of response to your emails and his angry reaction to your knock on his door. It adds up, in my mind, to having an immediate investigation at official level and I hope now that the article is published the promise of such will commence. Considering Woodley’s field of research in respect to the UK’s general security and in particular to its possible use by China we seem to have lost sight of caution.
Deborah Bromley
1 year ago
This article reinforces what I have long believed, the universities are amoral, focussed only on money and status and oblivious to the consequences of their actions.
Surely Imperial must have oversight of their staff’s activities?
Anyway, as set out in this piece, Woodley’s actions amount to espionage. I don’t buy the naïve argument.
Peta Seel
1 year ago
There is no limit whatsoever in the intellectual arrogance of academics, nor their amorality in advancing themselves and their speciality subjects wherever they find an opening. The behaviour of Woodley does not surprise me in the least. Another one cut from the same cloth is Fauci.
I am alone in thinking that the second photo, entitled ‘Clive Woodley at a conference in China’ reminded me of a defendant facing a capital charge at Nuremberg in 1946?
Marcia McGrail
1 year ago
Why does it take a caving book author/
investigative reporter to do the job my £tax pays state security to do? Why is my security so secondary that this information swilling around for years is ignored? Everyone must take this article to their MP. Not that much will be done about it – boris too busy partying.
My thoughts exactly. And why have I only read about this on Unherd – surely the story is so important it deserves a major splash in the national press? It would be interesting to know whether David Rose has offered this piece to the establishment press and, if so, what the response was.
I hope that the bunglers over at MI6 have a large file on this man. Somehow I doubt it though.
David U
1 year ago
“ Once the rocket goes up who cares where they come down. “That’s not my department” says Werher Von Bruan”. Tom Lehrer
Ian Stewart
1 year ago
This sounds like Philby all over again, with the casual insouciance of our own security regime. When I was security cleared at a fairly low level, any kind of contact with the likes of the Chinese was scrutinised and generally prohibited.
Woodley was the Chief Scientist at Qinetiq until 2018, which means he had easy access to everything it generated, and was liaising with the Chinese from 2014. That’s 4 years of our recent military research vulnerable to Woodley’s conscience or Chinese spy games. This sounds very very dodgy.
I’m astonished it was allowed, unless it was so he could provide misinformation.
Archibald Leach
1 year ago
“He told me that if I didn’t leave he would call the police, slammed the door in my face, and refused to accept my questions in writing”…that is the sign of a guilty man: Unquestionable. What on earth have our protectors at the Commons Select Committee been doing? – Blindfolded during the pandemic?
Great piece: finger’s crossed that your finding don’t drop into Boris’s party fancy dress pocket…
Mr Sketerzen Bhoto
1 year ago
I know we’ve always been at war with East Asia but its not that long ago that Xi was parading around Buckingham palace during a full state visit, in which he visited all the castles and got all the gun salutes. It’s a bit odd then to single out one guy who worked with China when the entire capitalist and political classes worked with China until ten minutes ago.
The article acknowledges the Cameron detente but points out that Woodley was attending an arms conference in China as recently as October 2021 – well after that ship had sailed.
Hand waving away the fact that the entire British political and business classes cosied up to China until recently and then focussing on one guy seems like he is a modern day whipping boy.
Ian Stewart
1 year ago
Congratulations David Rose and Unherd – this has been picked up with references to Unherd by the mainstream media!
Sheridan G
1 year ago
The creativity that goes into increasing the efficiency, deadliness and downright destructiveness of weapons is definitely weird. But somebody will do it, so I guess we should too, and do it better. Anything other would be a form of unilateral disarmament.
I’m in complete agreement with all points raised in this article and Woodley’s goings-on needs to be assessed, but it’s interesting that the article is seeking clarity on weapons design transfer to China while admitting China leads in some main areas of research including railguns and hypersonic missiles: obviously Woodley isn’t responsible for that or we’d have them too. In reference to another comment here, maybe Woodley is MI6’s James Bond out to steal weapons IP from China rather than be a target of 007 for handing it over? Let’s hope he’s not more of a Johnny English style of spy?
Neil Hollingsworth
1 year ago
Good day, Mr. Woodley.. The name’s Bond. James Bond. I have something for you.
Cue Bond opening movie music and the inevitable gunshot.
For at least a decade the West’s attitude to China, even at the highest reaches of government, has been willfully blind. We’ve been seduced by the prospect of a large and growing market compared to economic stagnation at home. So we’ve turned a blind eye to numerous danger signals about China’s true intentions.
Oddball characters like Woodley have been allowed to freely associate with their Chinese counterparts and exchange information. I don’t blame him so much as the West’s willful blindness to China’s real intentions.
One of the few positive outcomes of covid is the final unmasking of who and what the CCP really is. Woodley needs to be warned off China, and if he persists he should (finally) face consequences.
David Rose
David Rose- thank you thank you thank you for bringing this critical case before the public and before the institutions and defense people in charge. This is truly unbelievable. I wish there were more journalists like you who do the important work that needs to be done in this unstable world of today. I feel very helpless when I read this report and all I can do is hope your work reaches the right people.
“I don’t blame him so much as the West’s willful blindness to China’s real intentions.”
I do. “The West” is not an abstraction devoid of individual responsibility. It is a large group of individuals whose decisions guide and determine its future. The willful blindness has many causes and some of them are treasonous. Freedom is not free. It is much, much easier to lose than it is to gain.
So where are the articles about the entire political and capitalist classes. China is powerful because of globalist ideologies that were hegemonic, and still are hegemonic, amongst all the elites. It’s not just some semi retired chump working in a uni.
Quite apart from the national security issues, this was a disconcerting article.
As a civil engineer, I have sometimes wondered what kind of conversations took place in the design offices of N a z I Germany. Railways and g a s chambers don’t build themselves.
To dedicate an entire career to researching the hi tech destruction of human beings is mind boggling.
Including those designed to be used by the west?
Well actually yes. I get that the other side has psychopaths, so we have to have to have them, but the concept of professional success, as a scientist, means dreaming up putting aluminium particles in a shell so more die per shell is deeply creepy.
So Imperial pops up again in relation to the Chinese. Woodley and Fergusson appear to be working as useful idiots for the CCP.
Thank you for writing this. We now know about the work of Mr Woodley and his numerous visits to China, his avoidance of response to your emails and his angry reaction to your knock on his door. It adds up, in my mind, to having an immediate investigation at official level and I hope now that the article is published the promise of such will commence. Considering Woodley’s field of research in respect to the UK’s general security and in particular to its possible use by China we seem to have lost sight of caution.
This article reinforces what I have long believed, the universities are amoral, focussed only on money and status and oblivious to the consequences of their actions.
Surely Imperial must have oversight of their staff’s activities?
Anyway, as set out in this piece, Woodley’s actions amount to espionage. I don’t buy the naïve argument.
There is no limit whatsoever in the intellectual arrogance of academics, nor their amorality in advancing themselves and their speciality subjects wherever they find an opening. The behaviour of Woodley does not surprise me in the least. Another one cut from the same cloth is Fauci.
The Silk Road is paved with good intentions.
That really is very good. Hats off to you.
I am alone in thinking that the second photo, entitled ‘Clive Woodley at a conference in China’ reminded me of a defendant facing a capital charge at Nuremberg in 1946?
Why does it take a caving book author/
investigative reporter to do the job my £tax pays state security to do? Why is my security so secondary that this information swilling around for years is ignored? Everyone must take this article to their MP. Not that much will be done about it – boris too busy partying.
My thoughts exactly. And why have I only read about this on Unherd – surely the story is so important it deserves a major splash in the national press? It would be interesting to know whether David Rose has offered this piece to the establishment press and, if so, what the response was.
There is certainly a theme involving Imperial. I suspect the Chinese are getting a lot of value for their money. https://dailysceptic.org/2022/05/26/anatomy-of-a-scientific-witch-burning/
I hope that the bunglers over at MI6 have a large file on this man. Somehow I doubt it though.
“ Once the rocket goes up who cares where they come down. “That’s not my department” says Werher Von Bruan”. Tom Lehrer
This sounds like Philby all over again, with the casual insouciance of our own security regime. When I was security cleared at a fairly low level, any kind of contact with the likes of the Chinese was scrutinised and generally prohibited.
Woodley was the Chief Scientist at Qinetiq until 2018, which means he had easy access to everything it generated, and was liaising with the Chinese from 2014. That’s 4 years of our recent military research vulnerable to Woodley’s conscience or Chinese spy games. This sounds very very dodgy.
I’m astonished it was allowed, unless it was so he could provide misinformation.
“He told me that if I didn’t leave he would call the police, slammed the door in my face, and refused to accept my questions in writing”…that is the sign of a guilty man: Unquestionable.
What on earth have our protectors at the Commons Select Committee been doing? – Blindfolded during the pandemic?
Great piece: finger’s crossed that your finding don’t drop into Boris’s party fancy dress pocket…
I know we’ve always been at war with East Asia but its not that long ago that Xi was parading around Buckingham palace during a full state visit, in which he visited all the castles and got all the gun salutes. It’s a bit odd then to single out one guy who worked with China when the entire capitalist and political classes worked with China until ten minutes ago.
The article acknowledges the Cameron detente but points out that Woodley was attending an arms conference in China as recently as October 2021 – well after that ship had sailed.
Hand waving away the fact that the entire British political and business classes cosied up to China until recently and then focussing on one guy seems like he is a modern day whipping boy.
Congratulations David Rose and Unherd – this has been picked up with references to Unherd by the mainstream media!
The creativity that goes into increasing the efficiency, deadliness and downright destructiveness of weapons is definitely weird. But somebody will do it, so I guess we should too, and do it better. Anything other would be a form of unilateral disarmament.
I’m in complete agreement with all points raised in this article and Woodley’s goings-on needs to be assessed, but it’s interesting that the article is seeking clarity on weapons design transfer to China while admitting China leads in some main areas of research including railguns and hypersonic missiles: obviously Woodley isn’t responsible for that or we’d have them too. In reference to another comment here, maybe Woodley is MI6’s James Bond out to steal weapons IP from China rather than be a target of 007 for handing it over? Let’s hope he’s not more of a Johnny English style of spy?
Good day, Mr. Woodley.. The name’s Bond. James Bond. I have something for you.
Cue Bond opening movie music and the inevitable gunshot.