Andrew Dismore

I secured extraordinary admissions during question at the Assembly Regeneration Committee hearings into transport led regeneration.

The developer witness, Martyn Evans of Cathedral Group, frankly admitted that developers pull the wool over the eyes of Council planning departments over ‘viability’ assessments, which amongst other things are instrumental in deciding how many homes in a given development will be ‘affordable’. Mr Evans explained that developers ‘poached’ good local development control officers to work for them, thus gain the advantage over councils’ assessment their schemes.

 

 

Mr Evans also admitted that we ‘can’t leave it to the market to deliver good affordable housing’.

 

Mr Evans was very open about the advantages that developers have over councils. They have the whip hand and obviously wish to maximise their profits  at the expense of the community if local authorities are not equipped to scrutinise their schemes.

Time and again, we have seen this in Barnet, for example most recently in West Hendon.

Councils must be better resourced to ensure that developers play a fair role in the delivery of their plans and that the community also benefit , not just property company shareholders.’

During the session, I  also raised issues relating to HS2, Mill Hill East  step free access,  transport links for Colindale, and the lack of involvement of local communities in planning decisions.