More than 1,000 protesters are due to object to China’s proposed new “super-embassy” in London on Saturday before a crunch decision by the government.
A demonstration against the embassy, which has become a huge diplomatic issue between the UK and China, is being held at Royal Mint Court, a historic site near the Tower of London.
China proposes to turn 20,000 sq metres (2 hectares) of land at Royal Mint Court into the largest embassy in Europe. China bought the site in 2018, but Tower Hamlets council refused planning permission in 2022 citing a range of concerns, including the impact of large protests at the site. The Conservative government declined to intervene.
Beijing resubmitted the application after Labour came to power and the government called it in after the Chinese president, Xi Jinping, raised it directly with Keir Starmer. Cabinet ministers Yvette Cooper and David Lammy have signalled their support for the proposal and a local inquiry hearing will begin next week.
The proposed embassy is staunchly opposed by local residents, who are organising Saturday’s protest alongside campaign groups representing Uyghurs, Tibetans, Hong Kongers and Chinese dissidents.
Several politicians including the shadow justice secretary, Robert Jenrick, shadow security minister, Tom Tugendhat, and Blair McDougall, the Labour MP for East Renfrewshire and member of the foreign affairs select committee, are due to address the demo.
McDougall said: “We have to have red lines in our relations with Beijing. Currently Jimmy Lai, a British citizen, is in prison for exercising the rights that are guaranteed under the agreement between the UK and China. of savings for British Hong Hongers have been stolen. We should not be doing any favours for Beijing while they are in breach of past deals.”
Mark Nygate, the treasurer of the Royal Mint Court Residents Association, said residents were concerned that the embassy was being pushed through for political reasons without any regard to local people’s concerns. “We’re all unhappy with the way the government has gone about this process – it seems to have got involved and not allowed the inspector to do her bit,” he said.
“They called for a public inquiry, appointed an inspector – and next thing you’ve got David Lammy and Yvette Cooper writing a letter to the council saying they would approve the scheme based on a couple of changes to the plan … But the damage that would be caused to my block and the estate is huge.”
Organisers have informed the Metropolitan police that more than 1,000 people were expected to attend the demo, with coaches due to bring demonstrators from Manchester, Liverpool and Scotland.
The Met lodged an objection to the project in November, warning that there was not enough space in front of the proposed embassy to safely accommodate more than 100 protesters and that demos on the site would impact local roads and risk public safety.
However, the Met later withdrew its objection on the basis of a 2022 document submitted by the Chinese embassy, which estimated that nearly 2,000 could safely protest in front of the site and up to 4,500 people on the streets surrounding it.
Tower Hamlets council, which restated its opposition to the proposal in December, has also now withdrawn its objection.
Those involved in organising the protest include several Hong Kong campaign groups, the World Uyghur Congress, the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China and the Global Alliance for Tibet and Persecuted Minorities.
The organisers’ objective is to prove the Met was right originally to warn that the embassy would become a prime target for large protests that could not be safely accommodated. The planning inspector in charge of assessing the application has been invited to attend.
A local inquiry into the plans will begin at the planning inspectorate on Tuesday and will sit for up to six days. The final decision rests with Angela Rayner, the deputy prime minister and housing secretary.
