Andrew Dismore

Labour London Assembly Member for Barnet and Camden Andrew Dismore has hailed the success of Camden Council, who have secured the agreement of Sadiq Khan, Mayor of London, to issue a directive, known as an Article 4 directive, that would stop the automatic conversion of offices to residential premises in Camden’s Central Activities Zone (CAZ).

Currently, due to the deregulation of planning by the Government, such conversions are automatically allowed under permitted development rules. However, many businesses say that this has led to a large reduction in office space, pushing up rents.

Mr Dismore said:

‘The Mayor is right to say that the loss of office space will reduce local amenities, employment opportunities and result in the loss of nationally important businesses and organisations from the area.

‘I congratulate Camden on their bold and decisive action to save local office space. This is what an active council that cares about the local community, and recognises their city-wide and national importance in the provision of offices for internationally significant organisations and businesses. I contrast this with my other Borough of Barnet, where the Conservative Council there could not care less about providing employment space and have ignored the possibilities of an Article 4 directive. The outcome is clear for all to see, with office blocks such as Premier House in Edgware being converted to flats at the expense of the many small businesses and charities based there.’