LDN Weekly – Issue 334 – 04 October 2024 – Purgatory Central

PURGATORY CENTRAL

Dear Reader,

Let’s get something out of the way – Euston station is a disgrace on pretty much every level. Woefully inadequate for the needs of a 21^st century transport system, with few passengers emerging from the ordeal – and ordeal is the right word – with anything positive to say. If the station itself wasn’t bad enough, the dire service provided by Avanti trains prolongs the torment. And then there’s the HS2 debacle. Dither, delay and a near-absence of political leadership turning a flagship infrastructure project into a source of national shame.

What to do about Euston sits in the new Labour Government’s already packed in-tray, but reports suggest we may be close now to a decision. Ministers may well have been jolted by recent media coverage (which we reflect on in today’s LDN). Being cynical, one suspects the sudden surge in column inches on Euston come from a London commentariat on their forays to Birmingham and Liverpool for Tory and Labour conferences, suddenly forced to share the misery of regular Euston users. Let’s not be sniffy – it all helps keep up the pressure.

Hands up, I admit I’m a fan of a bit of brutalism and modernism. Unlike some, I don’t come out in a rash at everything built in the 1960s out of concrete. And next time you’re in Euston, do look up and look down. Look up at the vaulted reinforced concrete roof spanning the concourse. Look down and admire the green stained floor tiles. If you have time, swing by the ticket office and soak up the amazing retro roof features.

It is a pity that few get the chance to stop and admire Euston’s bold 1960s design and engineering, but it is totally understandable because survival is the name of the game. Euston is an endurance, and the priority is transiting as quickly as possible through a soulless, overcrowded grey box, attached to nothing more than a warehouse with trains in it.

Look up or look down and you risk barging into crowds of passengers blocking the concourse, or walking into one of the excessive retail units shoehorned in by Network Rail, determined to squeeze as much revenue from suffering passengers as possible. Staring at the marvellous roof might lose you the precious extra seconds head start for your train before the stampede for the 1730 to Manchester Piccadilly.

At London Bridge, King’s Cross and St Pancras International, we’ve shown that major redevelopments can transform not just stations into a pleasant destination in their own right, but also lead to a catalyst for regeneration in the wider area. The same can and must be the case for Euston and the wider area.

Splashing cash on Euston might cause political jitters in Westminster – investing billions in London has become pretty toxic, and that certainly poisoned the last Government’s approach. But if we don’t get Euston right, the whole country suffers. It is no surprise that the Mayors of the West Midlands, Liverpool and Greater Manchester back the right solution for Euston – without it, HS2 is chopped off at the legs, and the full economic benefits never materialise.

A decision on HS2 is critical to the future of the wider area. The previous government salami sliced the number of platforms, scaled back plans and left what increasingly resembled a lean-to shed on the side of the existing Euston. This time last year, while the final section of HS2 from Old Oak Common to Euston gained a stay of execution, the money to pay for it was taken away (the £4bn or so instead switched to, among other things, filling in potholes).

A miserable station, long overdue redevelopment, with a scar of boarded up waste ground awaiting a decision on HS2 is embarrassing to London and a blight for both local residents and businesses. We desperately need a decision soon from the Government. And the stars could be aligning – a Labour Government and a Labour Mayor that can work together, a new leader of Camden Council who won’t want a hole in the ground at the heart of his borough, and in Lord Peter Hendy, the Transport Minister, someone who knows this project better than anyone. Fingers crossed, together, all go big and go bold.

Nick Bowes

Managing Director, Insight

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THE RAYNER AND KHAN PLAN

Ceasing of hostilities – as has been widely anticipated, Secretary of State Angela Rayner has written to the Mayor, Sadiq Khan, officially cancelling the previous Ministerial Direction which instructed Khan to partially rewrite the London Plan.

New World Order – in Rayner’s words, her intervention is a “demonstration of the Government’s commitment to working in partnership” with the Mayor, although she acknowledges that London needs to “increase markedly” the number of new homes being built.  

History – Rayner’s predecessor Michael Gove directed Sadiq Khan on 18^th March 2024 to boost the number of new homes, citing policies “in the London Plan that I fear are holding delivery back and require urgent action”.

Timing – Gove’s intervention, coming as it did just days before the pre-election period for the May’s Mayoral election kicked in, was widely seen as a highly partisan move. With Khan’s re-election in May, and Labour’s subsequent General Election victory, it seemed unlikely the Direction would survive. 

To the point – Rayner tears into the previous Tory government, referring in her letter to the 35% increase in borough housing targets as “arbitrary”, before criticising the old London-wide target as “divorced from reality” that “made tens of thousands of homes a fiction, existing on paper but never realistically planned for”.

Eyes on the prize – none of this detracts from the fact that London has failed to come anywhere near hitting house building targets for decades. As a reminder, the current London Plan sets a target of 52,000 new homes a year, the previous Government’s target for London was almost 100,000, and the new Labour Government wants London to build 81,000 a year.

Off Target – while there’s much debate on numbers, since the 2000 the highest number of new build completions London has managed was just over 37,000 in 2019/20.

Uphill struggle – making Khan’s job even harder, new data revealed a 92% fall in new starts by housing associations in the capital, with just 150 started in Q2.

Budgeting ahead – while many eyes are on the forthcoming Budget, reports this week suggest the affordable housing sector will have to wait until next Spring for more details on the next five year affordable housing programme.

Home Alone – Ahead of the Budget and Spending Review and a promised Housing Strategy, Housing Minister Matt Pennycook has written a demanding eight page letter to the Chair of Homes England, Peter Freeman setting out the new Government’s seven immediate priorities for the housing quango.

Game, set and….. – elsewhere, Deputy Mayor Jules Pipe last Friday granted permission for the All England Lawn Tennis club’s Wimbledon expansion plans. Highly controversial locally, with MPs in the surrounding area opposed, Merton Council refusing permission while Wandsworth approved, leaving the GLA to take the decision. It’s not quite championship point just yet, with the threat of a judicial review by opponents still a possibility.

Tickets Please – Totally unrelated…..Wimbledon Centre Court is one of the places Sadiq Khan has frequented over his time as Mayor, with the Telegraph reporting that he’s accepted over £100,000 in gifts and hospitality since taking office. There’s much media interest at the moment in Labour politicians and their freebies, but as one of the LDN team points out, this equates to around £15k a year for his nine years as Mayor. Markedly measured perhaps, for someone whose job is about championing the world’s greatest city?

RAISING THE ROOF: CONSERVATIVES DEBATE THE PARTY'S FUTURE

Buoyant Birmingham – what is left of the Conservative Party faithful gathered in Birmingham for their annual conference, with the only show in town the race to be the next party leader. Despite the much-reduced attendance of lobbyists and media, reports suggest the mood was surprisingly upbeat.

Tory Talent Show – all eyes are on the final four contenders battling it out: Kemi Badenoch, Robert Jenrick, James Cleverly, and Tom Tugendhat. MPs will vote on 9 and 10 October until two candidates remain. The party membership will then cast their vote on the final two candidates on 31 October, with the winner announced on 2 November.

AM to PM – interesting to note that of the final four, two (Badenoch and Cleverly) were previously members of the London Assembly.

Immigration Fixation – the candidates have heavily centred on immigration, with contenders also touching on reforming the party's internal structures. However, housing and planning hasn't totally been squeezed out of the debate.

Candidates' Corner – each of the leadership hopefuls touched on housing and planning during the conference.

James Cleverly promised to avoid green belt development and scrap stamp duty for residential properties, including bungalows despite expressing a dislike for them!

Tom Tugendhat acknowledged that some of Labour’s planning reforms are “interesting” but only if they're honest about it, with him advocating for planning reforms that empower local communities. 

Kemi Badenoch expressed support for building more homes, stating how critical it is for Conservatives to be a party for everyone, but despite holding the Shadow Housing brief didn’t offer up much more.

Robert Jenrick presented perhaps the most ambitious vision, passionate about getting Britain building again and highlighting the Conservatives as the party of homeownership. He's calling for an ambitious programme of urban densification and regeneration in Britain's modern history. For Jenrick, some of this is unfinished business, it was his ambitious planning reforms under the last government that were very publicly ditched. 

Building Blocks – housing and planning has also been a subject of debate in other forums across conference. At one event, members called on Shadow Housing Minister (and London MP) David Simmonds to support measures for increased home construction if the party returns to power.

London Calling – London Councils hosted a fringe event on a Conservative vision for London's future housing. GLA chair Andrew Boff called for shorter planning permissions to incentivise developers to deliver new homes faster, demonstrating the urgency felt by many to address the housing shortage in the capital. Perhaps the reality that Britain needs to get building is sinking in among the party faithful.

• Barking Riverside Limited, a partnership between the Mayor of London and housing association L&Q, has submitted one of the UK’s largest planning applications to the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham, seeking to increase the overall size of Barking Riverside to up to 20,000 homes, up from the 10,800 previously permitted. This would make Barking Riverside London’s largest development in single ownership.
  
  
• The Deputy Mayor for Planning, Regeneration and the Fire Service Jules Pipe, has approved the planning application for All England Tennis Club to transform Wimbledon Park golf course. The plan will see an additional 38 grass courts, as well as a new Show Court, an additional 27 acres of public park, improvements to Wimbledon Park Lake including a 3km boardwalk, and the planting of 1,500 new trees.
  
  
• Mitheridge Capital Management and Halcyon Development Partners have secured planning consent for a co-living development in Hackney Wick. The development comprises 337 co-living units, affordable workspace, a new canal-side café and enhanced public realm on a site that currently houses three warehouses.
  
  
• Objectors have begun to submit a range of criticisms against the Chinese Government’s second attempt to bring the UK’s largest embassy to Royal Mint Court in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. Local residents fear the impact of protests and potential terrorist attacks, while the site also includes important archaeological remains. China acquired the site in 2018 as part of its plans to relocate its embassy from Portland Place.
  
  
• Whitbread is to build one of London’s largest budget hotels at a cost of £200m. They have secured planning permission from Westminster City Council to develop a 693-bedroom hotel at 5 Strand which will be operated under the Premier Inn brand.

• Chief Executive of the West Midlands Combined Authority Laura Shoaf will chair the Shadow Great British Railways, the temporary body set up by the new Government to manage the return of the rail network back into public ownership.
  
  
• The Mayor of London’s night czar, Amy Lame, is standing down following an eight year stint at City Hall.
  
  
• Aspire Party Tower Hamlets councillors Ohid Ahmed and Saif Uddin Khaled have resigned from the party and will sit as independents. Cllr Ahmed accused Mayor Lutfur Rahman of creating a “political culture that thrives on intimidation and exclusion”. While this move leaves Aspire without a majority on the council, as one of London’s five directly-elected Mayors Rahman continues to lead the Council and the Executive.
  
  
• Gordon Adams is stepping down from his role as head of planning & public affairs at Battersea Power Station at the end of the year, just short of his 12 year anniversary.
  
  
• Baroness Louise Casey of Blackstock has been appointed by Landsec as an independent non-executive director.
  
  
• Chris Wright from Tesco has been hired by Avison Young as the company’s new head of sustainability and decarbonisation.
  
  
• The British Property Federation’s policy director, Ian Fletcher, has announced he will be retiring next year following a 22 year tenure.
  
  
• Following 17 years with the developer, Derwent London’s head of investment Giles Sheehan has left the business.
  
  
• Alderman Alastair King DL has been elected as the 696th Lord Mayor of the City of London. He has pledged to promote a ‘revitalised, resilient, and risk-ready City’, in an increasingly competitive world. 
  
  
• Former HSBC director Nigel Cates has been appointed as the new chief ombudsman at the New Homes Ombudsman.
  
  
• The co-founder of Lastminute.com, Martha Fox, is to co-chair a new government panel of technology experts who will advise on public sector reform. The panel of 12 industry professionals and academics have been asked to help the government make better use of technology across the public sector. 

STATION TO STATION - EUSTON IN THE SPOTLIGHT

Overcrowded Central – more coverage on the ongoing woes of Euston Station, with the Guardian, The Times and Evening Standard reporting on overcrowding, with one passenger quoted in the Daily Mail describing it as “like Squid Game but with a Boots”.

Misery Parkway – and now passenger watchdog London Travelwatch has waded in, issuing a fresh warning of the growing problems of overcrowding and their concern that a year on from the Office of Road and Rail instructing Network Rail to improve conditions at the station little improvement is obvious.

Light at the end of the tunnel – weekend news coverage hinted strongly that the HS2 extension from Old Oak Common to Euston will get the green light by ministers, as well as a multi-billion pound transformation of the station itself. Government sources said that “HS2 just wouldn't work if the terminus was not at Euston. The station is also well overdue for investment and has become a dystopian mess and stain on London”.

Shunted into the sidings – Not only is this a decision the Evening Standard fully endorse, but they go further calling for a link to HS1/St Pancras to also be built. Note: the HS1-HS2 link was officially abandoned in 2014.

Arriving at the final destination – striking an upbeat tone, Sadiq Khan says it is “looking increasingly positive” HS2 will reach Euston, ahead of him joining Transport Secretary, Louise Haigh, on a visit to the Siemens factory in Goole, East Yorkshire, building the new Piccadilly Line trains. A perfect opportunity for the Mayor to lobby the Minister on Euston and transport investment in London more generally!

Euston Flyer – with Camden Council long favouring a development corporation model for a wider Euston regeneration, might the recent agreement between the Government and the Mayor for a similar scheme at Oxford Street increase the chances of one a few miles further north? And how wide might such a corporation’s boundaries be drawn? Could it reach south of Euston Road? One to watch.

Merry Christmas to You-Ston – compounding the forthcoming festive getaway, with St Pancras, Liverpool Street and Paddington shut or operating severely reduced timetables over Christmas and the New Year, Londoners are being warned to avoid a Euston likely to be even busier than normal… if that is even possible.

WE RECOMMEND

• The relaunching of the River Thames mudlarking permit scheme.
• Why London has been described as the UK’s worst night out.
• Capturing summer in the capital from the sky.
• Fixing Britain: Why underinvestment is at the heart of the UK’s problems and how we can overcome this.
• Uber to launch a pop up carbon negative pub where punters can cycle as they drink.
• And a special mention for the arrival of the new weekly Thursday London Standard. An eye-catching Keir Starmer interview kicked off the first edition, complete with AI generated picture of the Prime Minister staring out of the front page. The owners estimate the paper, which at 64 pages is in the mould of a cross between the daily Evening Standard of old and Time Out (which used to be published on a Thursday too), will have a readership of 375,000.

STEVE MCADAM JOINS LCA

This week we were excited to announce that Steve McAdam has joined us as a Senior Advisor. Many readers will know Steve from his time running Soundings and Fluid, both much-respected agencies that specialised in community engagement and co-design for major development projects. His remit at LCA will be to further strengthen our engagement capabilities, especially at grass roots level, to develop benchmark co-design processes, and to help our clients successfully maximise social value outcomes. You can read more about this here. 

BUZZ INTO STRATFORD CROSS: EXPLORE THE AWARD-WINNING INSECT GARDEN

Our client, Lendlease, officially launched the Royal Entomological Society Insect Garden at Stratford Cross, designed by Tom Massey and supported by Project Giving Back. First showcased at the 2023 Chelsea Flower Show, this award-winning garden is now open to the public. To celebrate, earlier this week, Lendlease and the Royal Entomological Society, supported by LCA, hosted an event featuring insect-themed cupcakes and a closer look at this unique teaching garden, which supports urban insect study and community engagement. Be sure to visit and explore Stratford Cross’ newest permanent green space! More info here.

LDN CONTRIBUTORS 

LCA prides itself on its intelligence-led approach to PR and communications and our dedicated insight team monitors London politics, news and issues as it happens.

If you would like to know more about LCA or anything in this edition of LDN – London in short please get in touch. 

Nick Bowes

Managing Director, Insight

Robert Gordon Clark

Senior Advisor and Partner

Emily Clinton

Account Manager, Insight 

 Ben Donson

Insight Executive

Design:  Aroa Maquedano Pulido:

We strive for balance and accuracy at all times; however, if you feel we have made a mistake, omission or have misrepresented a story or issue please alert the team by contacting the LDN team by using the details above.

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