British government approves new mega China embassy in London
發佈日期: 2026-01-21 00:05
TVB News
The British government on Tuesday approved a huge new Chinese Embassy in central London, despite heavy pressure from lawmakers across the political spectrum over its potential security risks.
Local Government Secretary Steve Reed formally signed off on plans for the building near the Tower of London, after years of delays and legal challenges.
Critics have long expressed concerns that the super-sized embassy, set to be the biggest Chinese Embassy in Europe, will be used as a base for espionage as well as pose a heightened threat of surveillance and intimidation of Chinese dissidents in exile.
A 20,000 square metre complex, with 208 secret basement rooms, situated close to cables carrying financial information.
This is what British media are saying about the new Chinese embassy, which has just been given the green light by the UK government.
The heads of two UK spy agencies said that while it's not realistic to eliminate all risk, appropriate "security mitigations" were in place.
Plans for the embassy have been plagued by objections and protests since 2018, when Beijing bought the site at Royal Mint Court for 225 million pounds.
Opponents say the huge site sits too close to underground fibre optic cables carrying sensitive financial information between London's two main financial districts.
Dissidents have been among those who have protested the plans, saying a mega embassy housing large numbers of officials would further China's repression of activists abroad.
Kemi Badenoch, the leader of the opposition Conservative Party, joined hundreds of protesters who chanted "no China mega embassy" at the site on Sunday.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer's government has repeatedly postponed its decision in recent months after multiple cases of alleged Chinese spying and political interference.
In November, the domestic intelligence agency MI5 issued an alert to lawmakers warning that Chinese agents were making "targeted and widespread" efforts to recruit and cultivate them using LinkedIn or cover companies.
Beijing has strongly denied those claims, calling them "pure fabrication and malicious slander."
The heads of the MI5 and the electronic intelligence agency GCHQ said in a letter to ministers that "as with any foreign embassy on UK soil, it is not realistic to expect to be able wholly to eliminate each and every potential risk."
The approval is widely expected to pave the way for a trip by Starmer to China, and an expansion of the UK Embassy in Beijing.
