Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether she had discussions with the Chinese Government on the proposed Chinese Embassy at the Royal Mint (a) at the 11th round of China-UK Economic and Financial Dialogue and (b) on any other occasion.

The Chancellor has engaged with the Chinese Government on a number of occasions, including during her visit to China for the 2025 UK-China Economic and Financial Dialogue, and has discussed a range of economic and financial issues. The Chancellor published a written ministerial statement about her visit to China on the morning of Monday 13 January (found here) and delivered an oral statement to the House of Commons on Tuesday 14 January (found here).

On 10 June, the Planning Inspector responsible for the Planning Inquiry into China’s application to build a new embassy at Royal Mint Court submitted her report to the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government. A target decision date of 9 September has been set. As this case will come before ministers in MHCLG for determination, it would not be appropriate to comment further.