China’s plans for large new London embassy rejected by local officials
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox
An exterior view of the proposed site for the new China Embassy, near Tower Bridge in London.
PHOTO: REUTERS
Follow topic:
LONDON - China’s plans for a new large embassy in London were rejected by local officials on Dec 9 on the grounds it could pose a security risk to nearby residents, putting pressure on the national government to reject the planning application.
The Chinese government purchased Royal Mint Court, a historic site near the Tower of London, six years ago, but has so far failed to gain planning permission to build a new embassy there.
China hoped to build a roughly 700,000 sq ft embassy, which would be the country’s biggest mission in Europe and almost twice the size of the one it has in Washington.
The central government said in October it would make the final decision about whether to approve the contested application, but the views of local residents and council will be considered at a planning inquiry in early 2025.
Politicians in Tower Hamlets district unanimously voted against the plans on Dec 9, although the final decision on whether to approve the building application will rest with the central government.
Chinese officials have repeatedly expressed frustration to the British government over its failure to help secure planning permission at official-level meetings, people involved in those talks have told Reuters, complicating efforts to improve ties.
A planning inquiry to decide whether to approve the embassy is due to take place over eight days in 2025, with a decision made at the latest by May.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said in November that he had asked ministers to examine the plans submitted by China after President Xi Jinping raised the matter with him.
The Labour government, in office since July, has made improving ties with China one of its main foreign policy goals after a period under successive Conservative governments when relations plunged to their lowest in decades.
Under Mr Starmer, the government has pursued a friendlier approach, hoping that an improvement in relations could yield some economic benefits. REUTERS
