Britain says China has shut unofficial police stations in UK
- Security Minister Tom Tugendhat says an investigation did not revealed any illegal activity by the Chinese state at these sites
- The Chinese embassy in London contested the minister’s remarks, saying such ‘overseas police posts’ do not exist
British Security Minister Tom Tugendhat said on Tuesday that China had closed reported “police service stations” at sites across the UK, and that an investigation had not revealed any illegal activity by the Chinese state at these sites.
Britain has previously said reports of undeclared police stations in the country were “extremely concerning” and that any intimidation on British soil of foreign nationals by China or other states was unacceptable.
China has denied operating any such stations and issued a statement contesting Tugendhat’s remarks via its embassy in London, saying the accusations of running police posts in the UK were a “complete political lie”.
British police have investigated claims made by the non-governmental human rights organisation Safeguard Defenders that such police stations were operating at three British sites, Tugendhat said in a written statement to parliament.
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“I can confirm that they have not, to date, identified any evidence of illegal activity on behalf of the Chinese state across these sites,” he said.
“We assess that police and public scrutiny have had a suppressive impact on any administrative functions these sites may have had.”