Britain's Foreign Office defended itself Saturday over alleged hold-ups in intervening over the killing of an English businessman in China.

A few weeks ago, London asked Beijing to probe the death of Neil Heywood, 41, who was found dead in a hotel room in Chongqing in November.

Heywood had reportedly forged close links with Bo Xilai, the charismatic former Communist Party leader of the southwestern city.

On Tuesday, the case took a dramatic twist when Bo's wife Gu Kailai was named as a suspect in Heywood's murder and Bo was removed from the Politburo.

The Times newspaper said the Foreign Office was facing mounting questions over delays in its intervention.

It claimed a British diplomat and two Chinese policemen attended Heywood's cremation in Chongqing shortly after he was killed.

But London did not raise questions with Beijing until three months later, despite locally-based British businessmen urging the Foreign Office to intervene, the daily said.

A Foreign Office spokesman said: "As we became more concerned about this case, including following suggestions from the business community, we took the decision to ask the Chinese authorities to launch an investigation.

"We acted as soon as we thought concerns about the case justified it.

"We are pleased that the Chinese have now launched that investigation. We were in constant contact with the family throughout and kept them informed of our actions."

The Daily Mail newspaper said that Heywood's Chinese wife, Wang Lulu, had visited the British embassy in Beijing on Friday, and was understood to have asked for a visa to go to the Britain with her children.

"We do not discuss the visa status of individuals," a Foreign Office spokesman said.