Tensions between Britain and China have escalated after Beijing criticised further delays to a planning decision on its proposed “mega embassy” in London.
China’s ministry of foreign affairs expressed “grave concern and strong dissatisfaction” after Steve Reed, the housing secretary, pushed back his final decision on the proposal until 10 December.
The row further complicates attempts by Keir Starmer, the prime minister, to reset relations with Beijing, which have already been damaged by a row over alleged Chinese espionage in the UK.
Lin Jian, a spokesperson for the Chinese foreign ministry, told a press conference in Beijing on Friday that the UK had shown “disregard for contractual spirit, acting in bad faith and without integrity”.
He said China had acted with “the utmost sincerity and patience” and the UK should “immediately fulfil its obligations and honour its commitments otherwise the British side shall bear all consequences”.
Starmer has been keen to improve relations with Beijing as he seeks foreign investment to help build major infrastructure projects in the UK.
But those attempts have faced multiple hurdles, including the two rows over spying and the embassy.
Beijing bought the site of the prospective embassy, which is near the Tower of London, for £255m in 2018. Tower Hamlets council refused permission for the project in 2022, prompting wrangling over whether it could go ahead.
Angela Rayner took over the decision last year in her role as housing secretary but was replaced by Reed days before a decision deadline of 9 September. That deadline was pushed back until 21 October after China redacted large portions of its plans for what it said were security reasons.
Downing Street this week said the decision had been delayed again in the midst of a separate controversy over two British citizens who have been accused of spying for China.
The case against the pair, Christopher Cash and Christopher Berry, collapsed last month, prompting accusations that the government had intervened in order to preserve diplomatic ties with Beijing.
Meanwhile, reports suggest Beijing has been accessing classified material on British servers for several years, renewing concerns that it could use the new embassy to bolster its surveillance efforts.
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Matt Western, the Labour MP who chairs the joint committee on national security wrote to the government on Monday warning that approving the embassy was “not in the UK’s long-term interest”.
Western said the proposed location posed “eavesdropping risks in peacetime and sabotage risks in a crisis” owing to its proximity to fibre-optic cables, datacentres and telecoms exchanges serving Canary Wharf and the City.
Downing Street said the fresh delay to the embassy planning decision was not motivated by political concerns and instead reflected the complexity of the application.
A spokesperson said on Thursday: “Given the detailed nature of the representations that have been provided, and the need to give parties sufficient opportunity to respond, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government considers that more time is needed for full consideration of the applications.”
