China mega embassy decision ‘set to be delayed again’ amid spy case row
Approval of a planned Chinese “mega embassy” in London will reportedly be further delayed due to rising tensions over Labour’s approach to Beijing.
Officials at the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) are reportedly preparing to announce that the 21 October deadline will be postponed. Telegram.
Controversy has surrounded China’s plans to build a major embassy near the Tower of London since 2018; No final decision has been made as it has been postponed many times. At that time, China purchased the 20,000 square meter complex at the Royal Mint for £255 million.
The potential delay follows changes to the department responsible for planning litigation during the new Cabinet reshuffle, which saw Steve Reed take over from Angela Rayner, who resigned from her position.
Critics attributed the possible delay to the collapse of the trial of the alleged Chinese spies.
The prosecution of former parliamentary investigator Christopher Cash and teacher Christopher Berry was withdrawn after the Crown Prosecution Service spent “months” trying to get from the government the evidence it needed to show China was a threat to national security, but witness statements did not meet the threshold for prosecution.
Luke de Pulford, co-founder of the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China, said: Telegram: “The reason for this delay strains credulity, to put it kindly. Steve Reed’s planning officials [the Communities Secretary] The department has already spent six weeks longer than planned and has done a very diligent job.
“Everyone knows that the final call for a mega embassy will be determined by politics, not planning law. The real reason for this delay is that current reviews make it undesirable to give the expected green light.”
Sir Keir said responsibility lay with the previous Conservative administration, which was in power at the time of the alleged crimes.
The Prime Minister argued on Thursday that his government could not provide evidence to that effect because the last Conservative administration did not identify China as a threat to national security, which director of prosecutions Stephen Parkinson said was necessary to meet the threshold for prosecution.
Planning for the embassy has faced a series of setbacks after its initial planning application was rejected by Tower Hamlets Council in December 2022, citing safety concerns and opposition from local residents. Another planning application was submitted shortly after the general election and ministers requested the proposal from the council, leading to an investigation by the Planning Inspectorate and a final decision by the Communities Department.
In August, Ms. Rayner asked China to explain why parts of the new embassy plans were changed.
MHCLG declined to comment.
