An effort is ramping up in government to defocus from the China spy trial collapse while publicising threats towards the UK from the Chinese state. The Chinese mega-embassy decision on 10 December is a focal point…
A government source tells Guido that “yesterday’s Security Minister statement in Parliament is part of a number of upcoming sequenced ‘events’ to balance out wider arguments and the debacle around the non-trial and to give the government as strong a national security public narrative as possible.“ These will be in advance of the decision on the mega-embassy and will have the effect of covering Labour if it goes through…
Insider sources say Whitehall officials are increasingly focussed on China through senior-level meetings. Jonathan Powell is still running China policy from No10…
The decision is upcoming. Broadly, FCDO is fretting about the quid pro quo for its embassy in Beijing, HMT is fretting about growth and the “consequences” threat issued weeks ago, the National Security Committee has provided assessments and mitigations for security implications the mega-embassy at the Royal Mint site, and MHCLG is angry that it was given the decision in the first place. No10 will not be able to pretend this is a decision they did not have some control over, not least because Starmer said it himself…
