China said on Friday a British national had been sentenced to five years in jail in 2022 for spying.

Businessman Ian Stones was convicted of being bought off to provide intelligence to “external forces,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said when asked about the case at a daily briefing.

Wang said a Beijing court in 2022 "sentenced in first instance the British defendant... to five years in prison for the crime of illegally obtaining intelligence for overseas actors".

After an appeal, he added, the case was upheld in September last year.

Wang said the court tried the case strictly in accordance with the law. (Agencies)