Minister admits China ‘poses series of threats to national security’ but ‘also presents opportunities’ 

Planning minister Matthew Pennycook has said China “poses a series of threats to UK national security”, but added the country “also presents opportunities”.

Sarah Champion, the Labour MP for Rotherham who chairs the Commons International Development Committee, told the Commons: “Multiple Government agencies and Government departments have raised concerns about this mega-embassy.

“Our international partners have raised concerns about it. Every security briefing I’ve had identifies China as a hostile state to the UK.

“I am in no doubt this mega-embassy should not be allowed to go ahead.”

Ms Champion added: “I want my Government to stand up to bullies, not reward them. We need to be seeing rules, limits, put in place around China to stop this behaviour, not rewarding them with the embassy that they so dearly want.”

Mr Pennycook replied: “We need a consistent position on China which cannot be boiled down to one word.

“We recognise that China poses a series of threats to UK national security and we challenge these robustly. China also presents opportunities to the UK as the world’s second-largest economy and the UK’s third-largest trading partner.

“We will therefore continue to develop a consistent and pragmatic approach to economic engagement without compromising our national security.”

China’s proposed London embassy  would give the country ‘launch-pad for economic warfare,’ says Minister

The Shadow Home Office Minister said a new Chinese embassy in London would give the country “launch-pad for economic warfare” against the UK.

Alice Kearns referenced a report from The Telegraph this morning, detailing how plans for the new embassy include 208 secret rooms and a hidden chamber. It has also been noted that there may be plans to demolish a wall between data cables running through the City of London and the embassy.

Ms Kearns said: “Cables on which our economy is dependent. Cables carrying millions of British people’s emails and financial data, and access that would give the Chinese Communist Party a launch-pad for economic warfare against our nation.

“The Home Office and the Foreign Office say security concerns have been addressed. So I put to the minister, had any minister seen these unredacted plans before the Telegraph uncovered them, and if not, why not?”

She added: “The Government can claim today that they had no idea about these secret rooms, and we will take them at that word. But they cannot now say they have no power to protect us. Protect our economy, protect the British people, deny the Chinese Communist Party their embassy.”

 ‘Stop Reform’ plot risks victory for hard-left if Nigel Farage doesn’t ‘Unite the Right’, MP warns

A tactical voting plot to “Stop Reform” could see the “far-left” pull off a shock victory unless Nigel Farage does a deal with Kemi Badenoch, a veteran Tory MP has told GB News.

Andrew Rosindell, who was first elected as the MP for Romford in 2001, suggested failing to ‘Unite the Right’ could also see the UK backtrack on Brexit.

Speaking to GB News, Mr Rosindell pointed out the policy areas that unite Mr Farage and Mrs Badenoch.

He said: “The Conservative Party and Reform are both on the right of British politics and share many common objectives with the shared aims of protecting Britain’s sovereignty, securing our borders, and upholding the traditional British values that make our country strong and great.

“If we allow division on the right, we risk handing power to a coalition of the left that will weaken our nation and totally reverse the progress we’ve made since Brexit.

“Tactical voting by progressive forces of the left involving Labour, Greens, Liberal Democrats, Scottish and Welsh nationalists and even Jeremy Corbyn’s far-left and Islamic independents is a real threat.

“The polls make it clear that cooperation on the right between Conservatives, Unionists and Reform is essential if we are to stop a far-left Government from seizing control of the UK after the next General Election.”

READ THE FULL STORY HERE

Keir Starmer poised for another major U-turn after Labour MP threatened to quit and spark by-election chaos 

Sir Keir Starmer could water down proposals to limit jury trials following a backlash from MPs, peers and senior legal figures, it has been claimed.

Whitehall sources suggest Government officials have been discussing changes in a last-ditch attempt to stave off a bruising defeat in the House of Lords.

Justice Secretary David Lammy is understood to be pushing ahead with the plans in their current form, The Guardian has reported.

The plans currently include establishing a new criminal court where judges will hear cases on their own in an attempt to cut the courts backlog.

READ THE FULL STORY HERE

Sir Ed Davey sets out ‘fully costed plan’ for NHS 

Sir Ed Davey has revealed the Liberal Democrats plans to “guarantee” GP appointments and invest in hospital and social care to crack down on the number of hospital patients waiting to be discharged.

He told a London press conference: “We put forward a fully costed plan to guarantee everyone a GP appointment within seven days or within 24 hours if it is urgent.

“We campaigned for it at the last election and we are still pressing the Government to adopt it now.”

“Today, I am announcing a new plan to invest in hospitals and social care and in supporting family carers,” the Lib Dem leader added.

“To help get people out of hospital quickly and help keep them out of hospital safely.”

Sir Ed Davey says Labour ‘too busy fighting over keys for No10 to fix NHS’ and takes swipe at Nigel Farage

Sir Ed Davey said Labour is “too busy fighting over the keys to No10” to fix the NHS as he discussed growing A&E wait times.

The Lib Dem leader said: “We have to offer hope and only the Liberal Democrats can do that.

“Conservatives can’t, they caused this crisis in the first place and they have literally nothing to say about it now.

“Sadly, Labour have shown they can’t either and now they are too busy fighting over the keys to No10 to fix our NHS.

“And Reform – don’t make me laugh. Nigel Farage doesn’t care about the NHS.

“He still hasn’t mentioned it once in the House of Commons – although he isn’t actually there that often so that might be why – but he hasn’t said the word ‘hospitals’ once.

“But we know what he wants to do don’t we. We know his plans, even if he is too smart to say it out loud.

“He wants to privatise the NHS. Replace it with an American-style insurance system, a system where every year in the US almost half a million people go bankrupt because of their medical bills.

“That is Trump’s America, don’t let it become Farage’s Britain.”

Sir Ed Davey slams A&E wait times as ‘national scandal’ 

Sir Ed Davey has branded A&E wait times a “national scandal” that “has to end”.

He told a press conference in London: “In 2025, more patients waited 12 hours to be admitted than in any year of the pandemic and in any year in the history of our NHS.

“That is a national scandal and it has to end. Because what more stark example could there be of the way things in our country aren’t working the way they should than thousands of people lying for hours in corridors in our hospitals, people dying on those trolleys.”

“This deadly corridor crisis isn’t befitting of the heroic doctors, nurses and other health professionals who work in our NHS, it is not what we expect from our NHS and it is not what we pay our hard-earned money in taxes to fund our NHS for,” he added.

Sir Ed Davey says Britons are dying ‘every single day’ because of ‘shocking corridor crisis’ in hospitals 

Sir Ed Davey is delivering a news conference on A&E wait times.

The Liberal Democrat leader said: “Every single day people are dying because of the shocking ‘corridor crisis’ in our hospitals and it didn’t used to be like this.

“Not so long ago, ministers talked about four hour waits in A&E.”

He added that “not so long ago” the thought of waiting more than 12 hours in A&E was “unthinkable”.

Sir Ed pointed to data from November 2015 which showed 29 patients waited more than 12 hours, compared to over 50,000 in November 2025.

Shadow Chancellor will vow to protect OBR and accuse Nigel Farage of seeking to ‘play fast and loose’ with public finances in speech 

A Tory government would protect the UK’s budget watchdog, shadow chancellor Sir Mel Stride will say, rebuking Nigel Farage’s suggestion Reform UK could scrap the body if elected.

In a speech at the Institute for Government think tank later today, Sir Mel will accuse the Reform leader of seeking to “play fast and loose with the public finances” as he defends the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) as key in preventing chancellors “from marking their own homework”.

Mr Farage earlier this month said he was giving “serious thought” to axing what he called “a Blairite-style quango” that is “dictating policy to elected politicians”.

The shadow chancellor is expected to say: “The OBR has become a vital part of our fiscal framework.

“It prevents chancellors from marking their own homework.

“But their role has been questioned in some quarters.

“It is not hard to see why a politician like Nigel Farage might want to get rid of the OBR when he fought the last election on a manifesto which made £140billion of fantasy unfunded commitments.

“Funnily enough, it is usually those who want to play fast and loose with the public finances who seem to have a problem with the OBR.”

WATCH: Labour MP issues stern warning to businesses using illegal workers that ‘next knock at the door might by immigration enforcement’ 

Labour MP says Elon Musk is ‘ideologically committed to pushing free speech boundaries’ amid Ofcom investigation into X

Elon Musk is “ideologically committed to pushing the boundaries of free speech”, a Labour former minister has warned.

Ofcom yesterday launched an investigation into Mr Musk’s social media platform X following reports its AI chatbot Grok was being used to create and share undressed images of people and sexualised images of children.

Former transport secretary Louise Haigh told Radio 4’s Today programme: “These issues are a feature, they’re not a bug of Elon Musk’s Twitter.

“Elon Musk is ideologically committed to pushing the boundaries of free speech, and we’ve seen that from his reaction to the threats of the Ofcom investigation.

“He doesn’t believe in the kind of guardrails and safeguarding that the British public would expect online, and he takes a very different approach from AI companies like Google and OpenAI.

“So it’s right that we are really, really tough in our response, and I’m really pleased the Government has taken him on so roundly.”

WATCH: Former Conservative chancellor Nadhim Zahawi was ‘begging Kemi Badenoch for peerage’, Tories claim

Labour says ‘all security implications’ of plans for China’s mega embassy in London ‘have been addressed’ as decision expected in days 

The Government has said “all security implications” of the planning application for China’s mega embassy in London “have been addressed” as a decision on the proposals is expected in just days.

The long-awaited decision on the controversial embassy was last postponed until January 20.

Sir Keir Starmer is reportedly poised to announce the proposal has finally been approved.

A Government spokesman said: “National security is our first duty and government security experts have been involved throughout the process so far.

“As the Home Office and Foreign Office have previously set out, all the security implications of the planning application have been identified and addressed.

“An independent planning decision will be made by the Secretary of State for Housing Communities and Local Government in due course.”

Peter Mandelson issues ‘unequivocal’ apology for keeping ties with Jeffrey Epstein 

Lord Peter Mandelson has offered an “unequivocal” apology to the victims of Jeffrey Epstein for keeping ties with the paedophile financier after his conviction.

Over the weekend, the former UK ambassador to the US declined to apologise to Epstein’s victims in his first major broadcast interview since he was sacked.

When he spoke to the BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg, he apologised for a system which meant Epstein’s victims were not listened to, but not for his own association with the sex offender which continued after his first conviction.

In a statement released on Monday evening to the BBC’s Newsnight, Lord Mandelson offered a more direct apology.

Lord Mandelson told the programme: “Yesterday, I did not want to be held responsible for his (Epstein’s) crimes of which I was ignorant, not indifferent, because of the lies he told me and so many others.

“I was wrong to believe him following his conviction and to continue my association with him afterwards. I apologise unequivocally for doing so to the women and girls who suffered.”

Illegal working crackdown sees raids soar 77 per cent as 50,000 illegal migrants deported from British soil

A crackdown has been launched on illegal working across the country, with the number of raids on premises soaring 77 per cent.

Amid pressure to get to grips with the migrant crisis, the Government has announced it has deported 50,000 people working in the UK illegally since coming to power in 2024.

Accelerated enforcement has lead to the highest level of action on illegal working in British history, with 83 per cent increase in arrests from July 2024 to December 2025.

READ THE FULL STORY HERE

WATCH: Liberal Democrats call for X to be ‘suspended in Britain’ amid Ofcom investigation 

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