Families living on an East London housing estate are furious that the Chinese Embassy could soon be dropped on their doorsteps – as they don’t want to deal with noisy protesters.
Residents living on the Royal Mint Estate in Tower Hamlets and other nearby housing estates are strongly against plans to move the Chinese Embassy to Royal Mint Court, directly opposite their homes.
The move was first proposed by China after it purchased Royal Mint Court in May 2018. It covers more than five acres of land and has reportedly been empty since early 2013.
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As part of the applicant’s plans, the Chinese Embassy UK wants to partially bulldoze some of the Grade II-listed buildings, and refurbish and restore others. The embassy would include staff accommodation, a cultural exchange, a courtyard garden and offices, and is surrounded by Royal Mint Street, Mansell Street, East Smithfield and Cartwright Street.
But people living nearby are extremely unhappy with the plans. A total of 51 letters of objection were received from residents’ groups living at St Mary Grace’s Court, Royal Mint Estate and St Katharine Docks, as well as representatives from Tower Hamlets Homes.
This image shows how close residents living at St Mary Grace’s Court are to one side of the site in the event of a vehicle-borne improvised explosive device detonating Credit: Tower Hamlets Council
Objections included fears of “possible terrorist attacks such as bomb blasts” and that the site could be “turned into a fortress and would be a terrorist target”. Others raised fears about local GP practices struggling, protesters demonstrating in their streets and increased CCTV.
Addressing the fears of protests, Tower Hamlets Homes said: “The current Embassy in Portland Place has a significant number of gatherings and lawful protests throughout the year. In line with this experience, it is reasonable to expect that the relocated embassy in its new location will continue to see a sizeable number of gatherings and protests in response to international political events.
“We have already seen the Royal Mint Green being used as a point of congregation for protests held by Extinction Rebellion and expect that the space will become a focal point for protests against the Chinese embassy in the future. This would undoubtedly have an adverse effect on the lives of residents on the estate.”
These images show what the Chinese Embassy UK want to knock down and rebuild Credit: Tower Hamlets Council
During the pre-application stage, Historic Royal Places (HRP) was another group with doubts about the idea of the Chinese Embassy being just a few minutes walk away from the Tower of London, a popular tourist attraction run by the organisation.
Adrian Phillips, a director of HRP, wrote in a letter from November 2021: “We have concerns around the potential of the Embassy attracting large numbers of people to areas already designated as ‘crowded
spaces’ and whether the designs currently allow sufficient space and measures for public safety and security.
How the Chinese Embassy would look from the Tower of London Credit: Tower Hamlets Council
“We include the area of Tower Gardens in this concern, where there is a potential for protesters to congregate.”
The planning application will be heard by Tower Hamlets’ strategic development committee on Thursday evening (December 1).
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