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A ruling on whether to sanction Chinese proposal for a recent large diplomatic complex in London has been deferred once more by the government.

Housing Minister Steve Reed had been scheduled to decide on the application by 21 October, but the cut-off date has been moved forward to 10 December.

It is the second occasion the administration has delayed a decision on the contentious location, whose location has sparked worries it could create an espionage risk.

A decision had first been expected by 9 September after government officials assumed authority of the procedure from Tower Hamlets, the local council, last year.

Security Concerns Raised

China bought the property of the planned new embassy, at Royal Mint Court, near the Tower of London, for £255m in 2018. At 20,000 square metres, the proposed complex would be the biggest embassy in Europe should it proceed.

The pending ruling on whether to approve the recent embassy was earlier under intense examination because of concerns about the safety consequences of the plan, including the position, size and layout of the building.

The site is adjacent to fibre optic cables transmitting communications to and from banking organizations in the City of London. Worries have been raised that Chinese operatives could use the location to intercept the lines and monitor communications.

Latest Changes

Additional inquiries have been raised in recent weeks about the type of the risk presented by Beijing, following the collapse of the legal proceeding against two men accused of spying for China.

The Government Legal Department surprisingly dropped charges against legislative research specialist Christopher Cash, 30, and academic Christopher Berry, 33, last month. Both men deny the accusations.

Prior Deferrals

The administration's primary deferral was requested by Reed's predecessor Angela Rayner, after she requested China to clarify why some rooms within its architectural plans had been blanked out for "safety concerns".

Planning consultants representing the Beijing diplomatic mission had answered that China "does not believe that, as a matter of principle, it is required or appropriate to supply full internal layout plans".

Rayner had written back to parties involved in the discussion, including China, the Metropolitan Police and a local residents' association, to give them more time to answer to the plans and putting the deadline later to 21 October.

Present Circumstances

Reed, who took over the accommodation position following Rayner's departure last month, has now sought additional time before a conclusive determination needs to be made.

In a correspondence reviewed by media outlets, the residential authority said more time was needed due to the "thorough quality" of replies obtained to date.

It stated that it was unable to establish a fresh cut-off date for new responses until it gets pending responses from the International Relations Department and Domestic Affairs Department.

Planned Amenities

The proposed complex would incorporate work spaces, a substantial underground space, residences for 200 staff, and a recent underground connection to join the Embassy House to a distinct structure on the embassy grounds.

Government Responses

Beijing's request for the embassy was first refused by Tower Hamlets Council in 2022 over security and protection worries.

It resubmitted an identical application to the municipal government in August 2024, one month after Labour came to power.

The Beijing Diplomatic Mission in the UK has formerly mentioned the recent development would improve "mutually beneficial cooperation" between China and Britain.

In a fresh official communication published alongside Reed's letter detailing his reasons for the most recent postponement, a China diplomat said objections to the property were "either ill-founded or unreasonable".

Alternative Opinions

The Political Rivals said Administration members should dismiss the application, and accused them of trying to "suppress the warnings about the dangers to national security" posed by the consulate location.

The Liberal Democrats also requested the proposal to be stopped, calling on the administration to "resist China".

Diplomatic Affairs commentator Calum Miller said it would be "insane" for government officials to authorize the consulate construction to proceed, after cautions from the chief of MI5 on Thursday about the danger of China intelligence gathering.

Protection Apprehensions

A former chief advisor to the former Prime Minister said MI5 and MI6 had cautions him China was "trying to build a spy centre underneath the embassy," when he was employed at Downing Street.

Speaking on a political podcast, the counselor said the services had told him that allowing the embassy to be constructed would be "a highly unwise choice".

In his yearly address, the protection head said "China national operatives" presented a country protection risk to the UK "every day".

He added that the UK needed to "guard itself strongly" against China, while also being able to "capitalize on the chances" from maintaining connections with Beijing.