Don’t waste the wasteland
POLITICIAN WANT RULES DROPPED TO ALLOW MORE HOUSING
THE potential for more than 10,000 homes in west London has been lost due to new regulations in the Mayor’s London Plan, Assembly member Andrew Boff has claimed.
The London-wide representative suggests hundreds of hectares of largely-vacant land in designated housing zones will now be ‘neglected for housing’ due to increased regulations on strategic industrial land (SIL).
Sadiq Khan’s increased SIL regulations mean that councils now have to provide like-for-like alternatives if industrial sites are used for housing.
Research by Mr Boff found that in London’s 13 designated housing zones, a total of more than 27,000 homes could be built on around 491 hectares of underused SIL.
Using mid-range estimates, the London Assembly member’s research suggests the potential for more than 10,000 homes in west London boroughs.
Housing zones in Ealing could reportedly support 1,700 homes, while a further 4,000 could be built in Hillingdon and 4,500 in Brent.
According to Mr Boff, the Mayor should capitalise on this land and scrap plans for new SIL regulations within the capital’s housing zones, something which he says would allow authorities to free up sites for developers.
“London absolutely needs a percentage of designated industrial land,” Mr Boff, the Conservative’s housing spokesman for the Greater London Assembly, said on Monday.
“However, when an area is listed as a housing zone it seems counterproductive to block homes being built on parts of it that are otherwise sitting vacant.
“Sadiq Khan’s London Plan has made it easier for someone to build a small block of flats in their back garden but made it more difficult to build on a large area of wasteland.”
He added: “It’s a backwards approach to solving the housing crisis – this under-used land sits within the zones specifically designated for housing.
“The Mayor needs to make the most of this opportunity and reconsider these unnecessary regulations.
“The London Plan shouldn’t ignore the contradictions between housing and industrial policy, it should help to resolve them.”
While the current London Plan does offer protections for SIL, it also states councils can “plan, monitor and manage the release of sur- plus industrial land” where compatible so that it can contribute to strategic and local planning objectives.
Objectives which aspire to provide more housing and, in appropriate locations, provide social infrastructure and contribute to town centre renewal are especially compatible, according to the London Plan.