Fake stamps spark diplomatic row as China denies wrongdoing
A diplomatic row has broken out with China as embassy officials deny responsibility for the scourge of counterfeit stamps flooding into Britain.
An investigation by The Telegraph identified four major Chinese suppliers offering to print up to one million counterfeit Royal Mail stamps a week for as little as 4p each.
Security experts and MPs described the mass forgery – which has resulted in victims being hit with £5 fines for failure to pay postage – as an act of “economic warfare” and akin to “printing counterfeit money”.
Jonathan Reynolds, Labour’s shadow business secretary, said: “This is incredibly worrying for British consumers and small businesses who are being defrauded, the Government must urgently investigate the scale of this forgery and work with Royal Mail, the police and the regulator to clamp down on this criminality.”
The chair of the foreign affairs committee has demanded the Chinese state launch an investigation and crack down on factories “brazenly” producing the counterfeits.
The Liberal Democrats have called on the Chinese government to face questions from ministers and urged the Foreign Office to arrange a meeting with the Chinese ambassador.
However, a spokesman for the Chinese embassy dismissed the reports to The Times last night, describing them as “baseless” and “low-level”.
They said Royal Mail should “have a thorough investigation over the internal supply chain, instead of pursuing the attention of the media” and said claims it was “triggering war by bringing fake stamps” were “totally ridiculous, absurd and ill-intentional”.
It comes after Alan Mendoza, founder of national security think tank the Henry Jackson Society, told The Telegraph: “It is inconceivable that a large-scale counterfeit operation like this could be occurring without the knowledge and therefore tacit approval of the Chinese Communist Party given its strict control over the Chinese economy.
“As such, it’s an obvious form of economic warfare and should be called out for what it is with economic repercussions for China if it does not rein it in.”
Alicia Kearns, chairman of the foreign affairs committee, said: “It is incumbent upon the Chinese state to now crack down on these companies who are openly supporting illicit trade in stamps, investigate printing facilities and expose those funding them.
“There is evidently a need for enhanced measures to safeguard postal service integrity, enhanced intelligence sharing, and increased efforts to mitigate potential economic and security risks associated with counterfeit postage operations linked to China.”
She added there was “no doubt” organised crime was involved and described the level of counterfeit stamps entering Britain as “on an industrial scale”.
Liberal Democrat MP Sarah Olney described the findings of The Telegraph’s investigation as “deeply troubling”, adding: “Surely a government minister has to step in to investigate.”
She said: “The Government can’t pass the buck on our postal service being undermined by fake stamps, made on the other side of the world. Ministers are missing in action on a potential scandal.
“As part of an investigation, ministers should question Chinese government officials in the UK. No stone can be left unturned, and the public will expect the Chinese embassy to be contacted by the Foreign Office.”
The Royal Mail has said it is “working hard to remove counterfeit stamps from circulation”, saying it regularly monitors “online marketplaces to detect suspicious activity, such as sales of heavily discounted stamps and work closely with retailers and law enforcement agencies to identify those who produce counterfeit stamps”.
“We work closely with a number of police forces across the country to apprehend offenders and search premises. In recent cases we have recovered stamps with a retail value of over £250,000,” it said.
