A protest took place at the site of China's controversial planned super embassy in London this afternoon.
Around 1000 people gathered in opposition to Beijing's plans for the embassy at Royal Mint Court, the Telegraph reported.
The Government is facing mounting calls to reject the scheme over security concerns.
Protesters shouted “shame on you!!” as the protest got underway amid a heavy police presence, with Kemi Badenoch and Sir Iain Duncan Smith among speakers.
The protest ended with a loud chorus of “No mega embassy!”.
Riot police were present beside the protesters, but there was no sign of any violence.
Flags were waved throughout the event, including the old British Hong Kong colonial flag, the flag of Free Tibet, and black and white banners bearing the slogan “Free Hong Kong – Revolution Now!”
The plans for the site, near the Tower of London, include 208 “secret rooms” and a hidden chamber, unredacted blueprints are reported to show.
Critics fear the rooms, located in the site's basement, could be used for the detention of dissidents who have fled the Chinese state for Britain.
The hidden chamber would meanwhile be located in close proximity to data cables said to be crucial for financial sector communications between the City of London and Canary Wharf.
Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch addressed the crowd, and accused the Labour government of being ‘scared’ of China.
Badenoch said: “China is a country that has harassed and sanctioned our MPs like Iain. China is a country that has harassed and abused British nationals connected to China. It helps our enemies, like Russia. It keeps slaves. It disrupts the global trade system.
“And what worries me is that we have a Government right now that seems to be scared of China. We have a Government that is afraid, too weak, no backbone.”
I believe the Government is acting recklessly in moving towards approving the new Chinese mega-embassy. I think this will prove to be a major failure and, frankly, a disaster for the UK. It would place an even larger Chinese presence right in the heart of London. China already…
— Iain Duncan Smith MP Chingford & Woodford Green (@MPIainDS) January 17, 2026
High-profile political figures such as Tory former ministers Tom Tugendhat and Sir Iain Duncan Smith appeared at previous similar demonstrations about the plans.
A group of local residents are also staunchly opposed to the plans and attended the protest which got under way at 2pm and finished around 4pm.
The Metropolitan Police had placed a series of conditions on the protest - that it had to remain within a given area near the embassy site and conclude by 5pm.
Ministers have promised to make a decision on whether to grant the Chinese embassy planning permission by January 20.
Before then, they have insisted it would be inappropriate for them to comment on it.
But it has been widely reported that the Government is expected to approve the plans.
Ciaran Martin, the former chief executive of the National Cyber Security Centre, suggested that Britain's spies are likely to have already thoroughly scrutinised the plans.
Writing in The Times, he said: "I don't know what the Government will decide.
"But let's suppose the security services sign off this site but the Government bows to pressure and rejects their advice.
"Then the Chinese come back with a new plan, provoking a new controversy (which it undoubtedly will).
"If we don't trust the professional and operational judgment of our own security services this time round, who should we use to assess the new proposal?"
Mr Martin also challenged the worries about secret rooms, describing them as "classified facilities", and added: "It's where classified work - the lifeblood of foreign and security policy - gets done."
