Keir Starmer has been urged not to approve China‘s plans for a super- embassy in order to get an invitation to Beijing.
Downing Street is said to have proposed that the Prime Minister visits the Chinese capital and Shanghai in January as he seeks to end the ‘ice age’ in relations.
The trip could be postponed if China decides that delays in approving its plan for a huge HQ in London represent too significant a political setback for the leaders to meet, Reuters reported.
The decision was put back again this week, with a verdict not expected until January, despite claims that the security services do not object to it.
Yesterday, No 10 said there could be ‘security advantages’ to the embassy in spite of espionage fears, as it would consolidate seven Chinese sites in London into one building.
Keir Starmer has been urged not to approve China’s plans for a super- embassy in order to get an invitation to Beijing
It comes after Sir Keir hailed China as a nation of ‘immense scale, ambition and ingenuity’ which held ‘huge’ opportunities for British businesses in a foreign policy speech this week.
In response to the planning delay, a spokesman for the Chinese Embassy in the UK said: ‘We strongly deplore the UK side’s repeated postponement.
‘We strongly urge [it] to approve our application quickly to avoid further undermining the mutual trust and co-operation between the two sides.’
Former Chinese ambassador Liu Xiaoming said: ‘The so-called argument raised by the UK side is just untenable. China is gravely concerned and strongly deplores this.’
