Responding to changes to emergency housebuilding measures in London announced today, BusinessLDN’s Chief Executive John Dickie said: “With housing delivery in London at a historic low, it is good that the Government and Mayor have listened and acted to strengthen these planning reforms and get more homes built.
“Streamlining the process for this new planning route, removing overly onerous conditions and making the key development milestones more realistic will make a real difference. All parts of London’s planning system must now work with the private sector to ensure these measures work in practice to lift housebuilding in the capital from rock bottom levels.
“Part of the package, however, will only be in place later this summer due to the need for further consultation. This underlines the need for more flexible regulatory models that can deliver change with swift due process rather than taking over a year from first announcement to first approval.
“It is also clear that more will be needed for London to hit its 88,000 new homes annual target given fewer than 6,000 started construction last year. That’s why we are calling on the Government to pause and review the introduction of the Building Safety Levy – a tax on new homes – to avoid jeopardising housing delivery, improve the efficiency of the Building Safety Regulator to reduce bottlenecks in the system and deliver targeted, short-term support to bolster demand.”