Government delays deadline for decision on China ‘super embassy’ as spy row intensifies
Sir Keir Starmer’s government has delayed a decision on whether China will be given permission to set up a new London “super embassy”.
The planning decision for the proposed site near the Tower of London was expected on 21 October, with ministers called to make the final decision.
But the deadline for housing and planning minister Steve Reed to make the decision has been postponed to December 10 amid mounting pressure on the prime minister over his approach to China.
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.
China hawks in Westminster have raised the alarm that the embassy site could be used to conduct surveillance from British territory.
Meanwhile, Hong Kong pro-democracy campaigners, as well as Uyghurs and Tibetans, fear that they could face intimidation and reprisals from the Chinese state if the embassy continues.
The delay follows a change at the top of the department responsible for planning litigation, with Mr Reed taking over after Angela Rayner was forced to resign.
Super embassy plans were previously rejected by Tower Hamlets Council in 2022 and the Chinese chose not to object.
But Beijing resubmitted the application two weeks after Sir Keir Starmer’s election victory last year because it believed Labor might be more open to the application.
Since taking office, Sir Keir’s Government has sought to establish closer ties with Beijing, following a cooling in the final years of Conservative Party rule.
The Joint Committee on National Security Strategy (JCNSS) said in a letter to the minister on Monday that approving the embassy at the proposed location near the Tower of London was “not in the long-term interests of the UK”.
Committee chairman Matt Western MP wrote to Mr Reed saying the proposed location presented “risks of eavesdropping in peacetime and risks of sabotage in a crisis” due to its proximity to fiber optic cables, data centers and telecommunications exchanges serving Canary Wharf and the City.
He also said there were reports of plans for basements and tunnels, and that security services had warned that allowing Beijing to establish Europe’s largest embassy would create a hub for the country to expand its “intelligence gathering and intimidation operations.”
The impending decision on the embassy comes as scrutiny continues into how the Government and the Crown Prosecution Service handled the collapsed Chinese espionage case. Critics said the delay in the planning decision was made due to the focus on the case and Chinese spying on the UK.
Mr Western said the case was a recent reminder of the extent of China’s alleged illegal activities.
“We ask that you accept that it is not in the UK’s long-term interest to approve this decision and that it will be very difficult to deal with the consequences of having such a site if relations with Beijing deteriorate in the future,” he said.
“We therefore call on the Government to prioritize long-term national security in its decision-making and this should be evidenced in your response to the embassy planning application.
“The security and economic resilience of the UK will be adversely affected if the plans are allowed to proceed as currently proposed.”
Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp accused the Government of being “afraid” to grant planning permission.
“The Government is now too afraid of the public to grant planning permission to a Chinese spy base as planned,” he said.
“And they’re too afraid of the Chinese to say ‘no’.”
He shared a post on X saying, “This is why you are late. It’s despicable.”
This is breaking news, more to come…
