The UK’s Labour Party is caught in the crosshairs of another controversy, as high-ranking politicians have come in support of Chinese “super embassy” plans, defying warnings from intelligence agencies and protests from residents.
In a recent development, British Home Secretary Yvette Cooper and Foreign Secretary David Lammy have indicated that they support China’s plan for building Europe’s largest-ever embassy in Tower Hamlets, east of London City in the UK. The embassy is planned to be built at the former Royal Mint, which was bought by China seven years ago.
The local authorities have repeatedly rejected the plan based on various concerns. For instance, the residents have been protesting the Chinese ‘super embassy’ plans based on concerns that it could lead to security risks and spying attempts.
Moreover, the British intelligence agency, M15, has also warned that the building would be extremely close to crucial communication cables, which could be compromised or attacked by the Chinese in a potential espionage attempt.
Meanwhile, London’s Metropolitan Police asserted that if the project goes through, it will lead to further protests and result in diverting troops from national security duty to the region to control the protestors.
In addition to this, there was concern that nearby historical landmarks, such as the Tower of London, which is directly across from the building, would be in line of danger if the super embassy was allowed.
“Policing this proposed Embassy would require officers to be taken away from frontline duties to fulfill the requirement of policing spontaneous and known protests at this location,” Jon Savell, Deputy Assistant Commissioner of Special Operations, said in a letter dated November 14 last year.
Moreover, International rights organizations urged the British government to reject the plan because they were concerned about a rise in Chinese espionage and infiltration efforts against Tibetans, Uyghurs, Hong Kong residents, and supporters of the British democratic movement.
The planned embassy “would serve as a hub for China’s authoritarian agenda, targeting dissidents, monitoring communities, and undermining democratic values on British soil,” the Free Tibet group said in a post on X.
The super embassy, it is believed, would also pose a threat to the US super-embassy in Nine Elms, located at a distance of just a few kilometers.
Earlier, the plans of the “super embassy” were rejected by local officials in 2022. Following Labour’s election victory last year, Beijing resubmitted their plan with no significant changes. The Tower Hamlet rejected the plan again in December 2024.
Intriguingly, the British Home Secretary Yvette Cooper and Foreign Secretary David Lammy have thrown their weight behind the project and emphasized the “importance of countries having functioning diplomatic premises in each other’s capitals” in a joint letter to Tower Hamlet’s Planning Inspectorate, stating that the Met Police had withdrawn their objections.
“Whilst there remain differences of opinion on where protesters would most likely congregate, on balance, the Metropolitan Police’s public order experts are content that there is sufficient space for future protests without significantly impacting the adjacent road network,” the two senior cabinet ministers said in a letter earlier this week.
The intervention purportedly came just a few days after Chancellor Rachel Reeves traveled to Shanghai and Beijing to strengthen commercial and economic relations with the United Kingdom.
Additionally, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) Angela Rayner of the current Labour government had said in October 2024 that she would make the final decision. While a decision is yet to be made, the support of the British ministers has stirred controversy.
Another China Controversy In The UK
The letter and inexplicable support for the Chinese ‘super embassy’ has not gone down well with the local politicians. The move has been lambasted as “an extraordinary attempt to influence an independent inquiry” by councilor Peter Golds. “‘This will be the largest embassy in Europe, a center of potential disinformation located not only on a world heritage site but adjacent to the City of London, a world financial center.”
“In addition, we frequently hear of the ‘operational independence’ of the police. The Met, who have enormous experience of controlling demonstrations at embassy locations, should say why, after Government intervention, they have changed their minds,” he stated in a fierce rebuke. He also urged the government to come clean on the nature of discussions it has had with the Chinese government.
As per previous reports, China had categorically stated that it would not allow the British government to proceed with renovations to its embassy in Beijing unless China’s super-embassy project is approved.
The relationship between the UK and China deteriorated during the Conservative government, mainly due to suspicions of Chinese spying and meddling in the country’s internal affairs. In October 2023, British MI5 warned that more than 20,000 people in the UK had been approached covertly online by Chinese spies. The agency further warned that tens of thousands of British businesses are at risk of having their innovation stolen.
China has been the object of many conversations regarding threats to national security in the United Kingdom. For instance, British defense officials alleged in 2022 that Beijing spies were responsible for 18 drone sightings at military sites and power facilities around the UK in just two years. The drone sightings reportedly occurred between 2019 and 2021; however, the military bases’ locations were kept secret for national security concerns.
In March 2024, the UK alleged that Chinese state-affiliated organizations and individuals were responsible for 2 malicious cyber campaigns targeting democratic institutions and parliamentarians. It noted that the UK Electoral Commission systems were highly likely compromised by a Chinese state-affiliated entity between 2021 and 2022.
Separately, it alleged that China state-affiliated Advanced Persistent Threat Group 31 (APT31) conducted reconnaissance activity against UK parliamentarians during a separate campaign in 2021.
The tensions between the two sides have persisted for several years, with the British accusing China of human rights violations in Xinjiang and spy activities in the UK and the Chinese accusing the Brits of spreading misinformation to malign it.
The controversy around the super embassy comes as the Labour government, elected in July 2024, has made improving ties with China a foreign policy objective. In fact, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer stated in November 2024 that he had discussed the issue with President Xi Jinping and requested ministries to review the plans submitted by China.
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