logo
Labour minister accused of misleading Parliament over secret plans for China's mega-embassy in London

Labour minister accused of misleading Parliament over secret plans for China's mega-embassy in London

The Suna day ago
A LABOUR minister has been accused of misleading Parliament over secret plans for China's mega-embassy in London.
Tory chairman Kevin Hollinrake has written to Housing Minister Matthew Pennycook after it emerged key building drawings for the Royal Mint Court site were hidden from view.
4
4
Mr Pennycook told Parliament 'all inquiry documents for this case are publicly available on Tower Hamlets website'.
But a Government letter sent on August 6 admits some designs are 'redacted for security reasons' and asks the Chinese to 'consider' handing over the unedited versions.
Mr Hollinrake told him: 'This directly contradicts the letter of 6 August…
"You cannot claim that you did not know about the redacted plans.'
Concerns have previously been raised about the plans, including unmarked basement rooms, a tunnel, airlocks and vertical access between buildings.
In his letter, Mr Hollinrake warned this underground zone 'will undeniably be used for intelligence work… [and] could be used for the abduction, intimidation or torture of anti-Chinese dissidents living in the United Kingdom.'
Ms Rayner has given the embassy until next week to justify the redactions.
The final decision on the 20,000 sq metre site - which would be China's largest embassy in Europe - sits with the Deputy PM and is due by September 9.
Human rights groups including Amnesty International and the China Dissent Network have said Chinese embassies have previously been used to monitor, intimidate and silence dissidents abroad.
4
4
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

JK Rowling compares Nicola Sturgeon to Donald Trump in scathing book review
JK Rowling compares Nicola Sturgeon to Donald Trump in scathing book review

BreakingNews.ie

time28 minutes ago

  • BreakingNews.ie

JK Rowling compares Nicola Sturgeon to Donald Trump in scathing book review

JK Rowling has compared Nicola Sturgeon to US president Donald Trump and the Twilight character Bella Swan in a scathing review of the former Scottish first minister's memoir. The Harry Potter author accused Ms Sturgeon of being 'flat out Trumpian in her shameless denial of reality and hard facts' on issues relating to trans and women's rights. Advertisement The writer is a long-time critic of the former SNP leader and her views on gender self-ID. The Twilight of Nicola Sturgeon My review of Frankly — J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) August 14, 2025 In her near-3000-word review, published on her own website, she accuses Ms Sturgeon, who passed gender reform legislation at Holyrood, of holding 'luxury beliefs' that have caused 'real, lasting harm' to women. Rowling published her review on X alongside what appears to be an AI-generated image of Ms Sturgeon in the woods in front of a wolf and a vampire. She said of the politician's memoir, Frankly: 'She remains stubbornly wedded to her belief that it is possible to let some men into women's spaces on the men's say so, without letting any man who fancies it come inside. Advertisement 'She denies there are any risks to a policy of gender self-identification. 'She can't imagine any male predator capitalising on such policies, in spite of the fact that it has, demonstrably, happened many times. 'She is flat out Trumpian in her shameless denial of reality and facts.' Former first minister Nicola Sturgeon at the launch of her memoir 'Frankly', at Edinburgh International Book Festival (Jane Barlow/PA) Rowling, who lives in Edinburgh, said the Glasgow Southside MSP had not been 'remotely humbled' by the Supreme Court ruling that sex in the UK Equality Act referred to biological sex. Advertisement The Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Act, which was passed by MSPs, was ultimately scrapped by Westminster, with the then Tory government saying it contravened equalities law. In her book, Ms Sturgeon said she had never received as much abuse than when Rowling posted a picture of herself on social media with a T-shirt saying 'Nicola Sturgeon, destroyer of women's rights'. The former first minister said the post made her feel 'more at risk of possible physical harm'. Rowling defended the decision, writing in her review her intention was to encourage journalists to question Ms Sturgeon on the impacts her gender reforms may have. Advertisement She compares the MSP to Twilight character Bella Swan, saying both were 'monomaniacs', with Mr Sturgeon being 'consumed' by independence. Nicola Sturgeon was compared to Donald Trump in a book review by author JK Rowling (Jane Barlow/PA) She says of them: 'Both shy, insecure teenagers have dates with destiny. 'Nicola Sturgeon will one day become first minister of Scotland. Bella Swan will join the ranks of the undead.' The author said Sturgeon made significant omissions in her memoir, including WhatsApp messages from the Covid pandemic, education standards and the row over delayed and over-budget ferries. Advertisement 'Perhaps the most disgraceful omission — and I'll admit to a personal interest here, because I'm married to a doctor who used to run a methadone clinic, so saw the national scandal up close — is the fact that Scotland continues to lead the whole of Europe in drug deaths,' she said. Ms Sturgeon has said she stands by the principle of gender self-ID but has expressed regret at not pausing her gender reforms in order to find common ground with opponents. Speaking at the Edinburgh International Book Festival on Thursday, Ms Sturgeon said the debate was 'toxic on both sides'. She accepted that 'in all of the tone and tenor of this I am not saying I was blameless at all', saying she 'desperately' wished she had been able to 'find a more collegiate way forward' on the controversial issue. Ms Sturgeon has been approached for comment.

Labour ‘looking for Diane Abbott's successor'
Labour ‘looking for Diane Abbott's successor'

Telegraph

time28 minutes ago

  • Telegraph

Labour ‘looking for Diane Abbott's successor'

Labour is reportedly searching for a successor to Diane Abbott in her north London seat. Supporters of Ms Abbott are concerned that a decision has been taken on the veteran MP's future before the conclusion of the investigation into her suspension from the party. Representatives from Labour's national executive committee (NEC) are giving informal advice ahead of a contest in her constituency of Hackney North and Stoke Newington, according to The Guardian. The favourites are said to include Sem Moema, a London Assembly member and Mete Coban, a Hackney councillor. Ms Abbott said: 'It does seem to be rather pre-empting the results of the investigation.' The MP, who has held the seat since 1987, was suspended by Labour after she claimed that Jewish people do not experience racism in the same way as black people. She had no regrets The 71-year-old had said the letter was a draft version and she was allowed back into the party in time for the general election. But she was suspended again in July after she made it clear to the BBC she had no regrets over her comments. She was previously suspended in April 2023 after saying in a letter to The Observer that Jewish, Irish and Traveller people did not experience racism in the same way as black people and compared the experiences they faced with that of people with red hair. But Labour said there had been no discussions by NEC members over future candidates for the seat while the investigation was continuing. 'There's no appetite among members for a stitch-up, they would want this to be fair after everything that's happened,' a figure on the Left of the party told The Guardian. Ms Abbott, who is the longest-serving female MP, is not expected to return to the Labour Party, according to sources. A suspended MP is blocked from standing as a candidate under party rules until their case is resolved. At the general election in summer 2024, Ms Abbott's majority in Hackney North and Stoke Newington was reduced to 15,080 as support shifted to the Greens.

Africa wants new map to represent continent's impact on the world
Africa wants new map to represent continent's impact on the world

Times

time28 minutes ago

  • Times

Africa wants new map to represent continent's impact on the world

On classroom walls from Lagos to London, the standardised world map shows a shrunken Africa, comparable in size to the United States or China, with an inflated Britain at the centre. Now African campaigners want it ­replaced because, they say, the nearly 500-year-old Mercator projection ­distorts geography by diminishing the world's second-largest continent because it exaggerates the size of the northern hemisphere. 'It might seem to be just a map but in reality it is not,' said Selma Haddadi of the African Union Commission. The AU is calling for schools, governments and international institutions to adopt images that reflect countries' true sizes. She said the present design had long fostered the false ­impression that Africa is 'marginal', a continent that could be tucked into Russia with room to spare, entrenching stereotypes across media, education and policy. Africa is sufficiently large that the US, China, India, Japan and much of western Europe could fit into the continent with space left over. The Mercator projection, developed in 1569 by the Flemish cartographer Gerardus Mercator, began as a tool for sailors. Stretching the lines of latitude, it allowed navigators to plot straight-line courses across oceans — a breakthrough for 16th-century sea travel. By the 18th century, Mercator's projection dominated world mapping, moving from maritime charts to home atlases and now viewed billions of times a year on Google Maps' mobile app. But its design exaggerates the size of landmasses near the poles and shrinks those nearer the equator. Antarctica is rendered so large that publishers often omit part of it and, in the process, centre the world vertically on Europe rather than the equator — which, critics say, gives the global north an exaggerated sense of importance. The 'Correct The Map' campaign has revived the debate over Africa's true size. Led by Africa No Filter and Speak Up Africa, and supported by the AU, it urges global bodies — including the World Bank and the UN — to adopt the Equal Earth map, created in 2018 by three cartographers, which campaigners say is a fairer representation of countries' shape and size. The case for change is underscored by President Trump's fascination with Greenland, which on the Mercator map appears to rival Africa in size. Africa is 14 times larger, while Greenland is smaller than a single ­African country, Democratic Republic of the Congo, where Trump is eyeing mineral deals to counter China's dominance. Trump, who floated the idea of ­acquiring Greenland during his first term, told reporters he was struck by its apparent scale. 'I love maps … and I ­always said, 'Look at the size of this. It's massive! That should be part of the United States.'' Canada, another country he has suggested annexing, also appears far bigger than its actual size. A World Bank spokesman said that it already used the Equal Earth or ­'Winkel tripel' for static maps. Moky Makura, executive director of Africa No Filter, ­said: 'The current size of Africa is wrong. It's the world's longest misinformation campaign, and it has to stop.'

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store