UK lawmakers raised security alarms over China’s proposed mega embassy in London, warning of espionage risks as Prime Minister Keir Starmer moves toward approving the project ahead of a Beijing visit.
Senior MPs from the UK’s governing Labour Party raised alarm in Parliament over China’s proposed “mega embassy” in central London, warning it could pose serious national security risks as Prime Minister Keir Starmer moves closer to approving the project.
The concerns surfaced as UK media reported that Starmer is set to green-light the construction near the Tower of London ahead of a planned visit to Beijing later this month, potentially ending years of delays tied to security objections, reports news agency PTI.
Labour MP Sarah Champion, who chairs the Commons International Development Committee, told the House of Commons that China should be treated as a “hostile state” and accused Beijing of intimidating people in Hong Kong, Taiwan and even within the UK.
“Multiple government agencies and departments have raised concerns about this mega embassy, and our international partners have raised concerns too,” Champion said. “Every security briefing I’ve received identifies China as a hostile state.”
“I am in no doubt that this mega embassy should not be allowed to go ahead,” she added. “I want my government to stand up to bullies, not reward them.”
Champion is among nine Labour MPs who have written to Communities Secretary Steve Reed urging him to block the project, which would see China relocate its embassy to Royal Mint Court, a historic site close to critical financial and communications infrastructure, PTI reported.
The parliamentary intervention follows a report in The Daily Telegraph claiming to have accessed allegedly unredacted plans for the site, showing a concealed basement room located alongside fibre-optic cables carrying financial data to the City of London and Canary Wharf, as well as communications traffic for millions of users.
Opposition Conservative MP Alicia Kearns, the shadow national security minister, said the plans raised obvious red flags.
“The unredacted drawings show a concealed room running directly alongside fibre-optic cables critical to our financial system,” Kearns said. “Granting approval would hand China a launchpad for economic warfare at the heart of our national infrastructure.”
Responding for the government, Housing Minister Mathew Pennycook declined to comment on what he described as a “live case” but insisted national security would not be compromised.
“We recognise that China poses a series of threats to UK national security and we challenge these robustly,” Pennycook told MPs. “At the same time, China is the world’s second-largest economy and the UK’s third-largest trading partner, and we will take a pragmatic approach to engagement without compromising security.”
China bought the 20,000-square-metre Royal Mint Court site in 2018 for £225 million and later submitted plans to Tower Hamlets Council to build a much larger embassy than its current premises in central London. After local opposition and an initial rejection, the government “called in” the application for review — a step reserved for projects of national importance.
The plans have since been repeatedly delayed amid security concerns, though it has emerged that UK intelligence agencies MI5 and MI6 did not file formal objections. Downing Street is said to believe consolidating China’s diplomatic presence at a single site could offer security advantages.
Starmer is now expected to approve the project next week, ahead of what would be the first visit to Beijing by a British prime minister in eight years.
China has consistently rejected espionage allegations. An embassy spokesperson has previously said that “anti-China elements are always keen on slandering and attacking” Beijing.
The debate has exposed growing unease within Starmer’s own party over how far the UK should go in engaging China — and whether economic pragmatism is now clashing with security priorities at the heart of London.
With inputs from PTI
