UK Approves Giant Chinese Embassy In London Amid Security Fears

Britain’s government has officially approved the construction of a sprawling new Chinese embassy in central London, capping years of heated debate, political wrangling, and security concerns. The decision, announced on January 20, 2026, by Local Government Secretary Steve Reed, clears the way for what will become the largest Chinese diplomatic outpost in Europe—right in the heart of the UK capital, near the historic Tower of London.

The site in question, Royal Mint Court, carries its own weighty history. Once the home of Britain’s Royal Mint for over 150 years, it was purchased by Beijing in 2018 for £225 million (about $301 million), according to multiple reports including BBC and CNN. Spanning 20,000 square meters (or 215,000 square feet), the planned embassy complex dwarfs China’s existing diplomatic presence in the city and is set to consolidate seven current premises into a single, fortified location.

If you’re picturing a routine embassy, think again. The plans—revealed in a 240-page government document and further detailed by The Telegraph—include 208 rooms beneath the embassy, with at least one located just feet away from underground fiber-optic cables that carry sensitive financial data between London’s main business districts. This proximity has fueled anxieties about espionage, with critics warning that the embassy could serve as a launchpad for Chinese intelligence operations, not just against the British government but also against dissidents in exile and even ordinary Britons.

“Do Chinese state actors present a UK national security threat? The answer is, of course, yes they do, every day,” Ken McCallum, director of MI5, said in October 2025, as reported by CNN. In November, MI5 issued a rare alert to lawmakers, warning that Chinese intelligence services were using LinkedIn to pose as recruiters and target people working in Parliament. The Chinese embassy in London dismissed these claims as “malicious slander.”

Despite these warnings, the UK’s domestic security services ultimately gave the green light to the project. In a joint letter released on Tuesday, MI5 director Ken McCallum and GCHQ director Anne Keast-Butler acknowledged, “As with any foreign embassy on U.K. soil, it is not realistic to expect to be able wholly to eliminate each and every potential risk.” Still, they insisted that the government’s package of national security mitigations was “expert, professional and proportionate.” The government echoed this, stating that “no bodies with responsibility for national security ... have raised concerns or objected to the proposal on the basis of the proximity of the cables or other underground infrastructure.”

That hasn’t stopped the political fireworks. The Conservative Party, now in opposition, has been especially vocal. Kemi Badenoch, the party’s leader, joined hundreds of protesters at the site over the weekend, chanting “no China mega embassy.” Alicia Kearns, shadow national security minister, warned that granting permission “would give the Chinese Communist Party a launchpad for economic warfare against our nation” and “create a daily headache for our security services.” Priti Patel, the party’s foreign affairs spokeswoman, went further, declaring, “Keir Starmer has sold off our national security to the Chinese Communist Party with his shameful super embassy surrender.”

The Liberal Democrats called the decision Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s “biggest mistake yet,” while Reform UK said it would “never have approved” the embassy, labeling it a clear security threat. The chorus of criticism reflects a broader unease about China’s growing influence in Britain and comes against the backdrop of a string of alleged Chinese spying and political interference cases in recent years.

Yet, the government argues that engagement with China is a necessity, not a choice. Prime Minister Starmer has repeatedly emphasized that while protecting national security is non-negotiable, “Britain needs to keep up diplomatic dialogue and cooperation with the Asian superpower,” as noted by BBC. The embassy approval is widely seen as paving the way for Starmer’s anticipated trip to China—the first by a British prime minister since 2018—and could also unlock China’s approval for the UK to expand its own embassy in Beijing, a move Beijing has reportedly stalled while awaiting this decision.

The diplomatic dance is complicated by economic realities. China was Britain’s fourth-largest trading partner in the four quarters leading up to the end of Q2 2025, accounting for 5.5% of total British trade, according to official figures cited by CNN. However, British exports to China fell by 23% during that period. “Surrendering our security for Chinese trade was always a bad policy, but surrendering our security while exports plummet is, frankly, insanity,” Kearns argued in Parliament.

For many Chinese nationals and pro-democracy activists living in London, the embassy’s approval is more than just a diplomatic issue—it’s a personal threat. Carmen Lau, an activist with the Hong Kong Democracy Council who fled to London in 2021, told CNN she feared the new embassy could be used to spy on and harass opponents of China’s government living in exile. The Hong Kong Police Force has even issued an arrest warrant for Lau and offered a reward to anyone who can provide information about her “or take her to the Chinese embassy.”

China, for its part, has expressed frustration with the seven-year delay in approving the project, accusing the UK of “constantly complicating and politicizing the matter.” A spokesman for China’s Foreign Ministry warned that if permission was denied, Britain “shall bear all consequences.” President Xi Jinping reportedly took a personal interest in the embassy’s fate, raising the issue directly with Starmer during their first phone call in 2024.

The approval comes with conditions, and the government has stressed that intelligence agencies will remain vigilant. Housing Secretary Steve Reed stated that he “has taken site-specific national security considerations into account in reaching his decision.” The detailed planning document concluded, “the proposal complies with the development plan when taken as a whole,” and therefore, “planning permission and listed building consent should be granted.”

While the embassy’s construction could still face legal challenges, the government’s decision marks the end of a saga that has strained UK-China relations and exposed deep divides within Britain over how to balance security, diplomacy, and economic interests. Whether the new embassy will become a symbol of pragmatic engagement or a flashpoint for further controversy remains to be seen. For now, London’s skyline is set to change—and so, perhaps, is the nature of Britain’s relationship with China.