China banned from attending Queen’s Lying-in-State in Parliament complex: U.K. media reports

The development comes after Britain’s sanctioned MPs had raised objections about the Chinese President being invited to the funeral at all.

The House of Commons Speaker has refused permission for a Chinese government delegation to attend the Queen’s Lying-in-State at Westminster Hall within the Parliament complex before the funeral at Westminster Abbey in London on Monday, according to U.K. media reports.

Sir Lindsay Hoyle is said to have refused a request for access to Westminster Hall due to Chinese sanctions against five British members of Parliament and two peers for accusing Beijing of mistreating its Uighur Muslim minority, ‘ Politico’ and BBC have reported.

While the House of Commons said it did not comment on security matters, the media reports claimed that China would have a presence at the funeral but not be allowed into the Parliament building.

As Westminster Hall forms part of the parliamentary estate, it is under the control of the Commons and the Lords Speakers. The move is likely to further strain U.K.-China relations, which have been under some pressure in recent times.

According to reports, the U.K. Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) has invited Chinese President Xi Jinping as Head of State of a country with which the U.K. has diplomatic relations. It is thought that the Vice-President, Wang Qishan, will be sent in his place along with a Chinese delegation.

The latest development comes after the sanctioned MPs had raised objections about the Chinese President being invited to the funeral at all.

In March last year, China had sanctioned nine individuals and four organisations in the U.K. in retaliation after Britain imposed sanctions on Chinese officials for alleged human rights abuses in its Xinjiang province. Sir Iain Duncan Smith, the former leader of the Conservative Party, as well as Tory MPs Tom Tugendhat, Neil O’Brien, Tim Loughton, and Nusrat Ghani are among those sanctioned as they and their families were banned from entering Chinese territory.