The government was made "fully aware" that China had covered up the true scale of the Covid-19 outbreak, it has been claimed.
Ministers were told "not to believe Beijing's claims" from the outset by the security services and to treat the information coming out of China with scepticism, according to The Telegraph.
A senior former MI6 official is understood to have told the paper that British intelligence agencies knew what was "really happening" in China and passed that information to ministers.
Today Defence Secretary Ben Wallace was asked whether he was aware of a report from the Five Eyes - the joint intelligence committee - that China covered up the scale of the outbreak making the situation worse.