UK government delays decision on China’s super-embassy until January | China
The government has delayed a decision on whether to approve China’s super embassy in London until January, when Keir Starmer is expected to visit Beijing.
Ministers are expected to give the green light to the controversial plans after there were no objections on security grounds in the official presentations of the Home Office and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The Guardian reported last month that security services had signaled ministers they could address security risks at the embassy, which will be China’s biggest diplomatic outpost in the world. Combining China’s seven existing diplomatic headquarters in London into a single embassy “will clearly bring security advantages”, a government spokesman said on Tuesday.
The Chinese government has agreed to consolidate all its diplomatic buildings in London into the 20,000 square meter Royal Mint Court site near London’s Tower Bridge.
The final decision on whether to grant planning permission has been postponed until January 20, when the prime minister plans to travel to China for bilateral talks. This is the third time ministers have postponed the decision.
Starmer will be the first prime minister to visit Beijing since Theresa May in 2018. In his speech on Monday night, he argued that the government cannot continue to treat China “hot and cold” and must strike a balance.
Describing China as “a huge, ambitious and creative country” and “a decisive force in technology, trade and global governance”, he said: “We experienced a golden age, then returned to an ice age. We reject this binary choice.”
“Our response will not be driven by fear or tempered by illusion. It will be based on strength, clarity and sober realism,” Starmer said.
In a letter to relevant parties and published by the China Inter-Parliamentary Alliance, Home Affairs Minister Shabana Mahmood and Foreign Affairs Minister Yvette Cooper said their departments were “carefully considering the scope of considerations” regarding the proposed embassy.
They said they were working with police and others to ensure national security issues were addressed and recognized “the importance of countries having diplomatic facilities in each other’s capitals as we maintain the critical need to maintain and defend our national security.”
The plan has faced fierce opposition from some local residents and campaigners concerned about Beijing’s human rights record in Hong Kong and the Xinjiang region. There have been numerous protests near the facility in recent months.
A government spokesman said: “An independent planning decision will be made by the secretary of state for housing, communities and local government in due course.”
“The Home Office and the Foreign Office commented on the specific security implications of this structure in January and were clear that no decision should be taken until we can confirm that these issues have been completed or resolved, which we have now done.
“If the planning decision for a new embassy in London’s Tower Hamlets district is approved, the new embassy would replace seven other sites that currently make up China’s diplomatic footprint in London, clearly providing security advantages.”
A Chinese embassy spokesman said: “We strongly regret that the UK side has repeatedly postponed the decision on the planning application for the new Chinese embassy project.”
The spokesman called on the UK to approve the planning application quickly “to avoid further undermining of mutual trust and cooperation between the two parties”.
China bought the Royal Mint Court site for £255 million in 2018, but plans to build an embassy there stalled after Tower Hamlets council refused planning permission in 2022.
The Conservative government refused to intervene but Labor took the matter out of the council’s hands soon after coming to power last summer.
