The Mayor of London is in the process of producing a new London Plan, with an initial draft published for consultation in late 2017.
We have consulted with and collated input from over 300 within our membership, to prepare a comprehensive business response.
The Plan seeks to deliver a step change in planning policy for London and sets very ambitious targets, in particular, for housing, transport andsustainable design. We support the principles of good growth that underpin the Plan including; making the best use of London’s land, delivering the homes that Londoners need and growing a good economy. However, it is vital that these ambitious targets are deliverable and viable within the context of the whole Plan and its policy requirements.
In short, we supported the principles of good growth including; making the best use of London’s land, delivering the homes that Londoners need and growing a good economy.
The Plan seeks to deliver a step change and sets very ambitious targets, in particular, for housing, transport and environment/sustainability. Whilst we agree with the principle of setting boroughs and developers ambitious targets, they must be deliverable and viable within the context of the whole plan and its policy requirements.
We have expressed our concerns that the Plan and its policies, as currently drafted, are unlikely to deliver the plan’s strategic objectives and the scale of growth it envisages; due to:
- the cumulative impact of the policy requirements on development viability; and
- the need for greater clarity and flexibility on planning policies that underpin the plan’s ability to deliver its strategic growth potential.
A panel of independent inspectors conducted an Examination in Public (EiP) over the course of January to May 2019. In total, there were 34 days of EiP hearing sessions covering 94 matters. On behalf of our Members, we prepared and submitted 39 written statements and participated in 24 hearing sessions. We are extremely grateful to all our Members who have contributed to our work throughout the process to ensure we have represented the collective interests of our Membership.
You can read our written submissions and our take on the discussions at the hearings here.
The panel of inspectors are due to report to the Mayor on their findings and recommendations in September 2019 and the report will likely become public in November 2019. The Mayor of London is hoping to adopt the new London Plan in early 2020.
