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Berkeley chairman Tony Pidgley has criticised English Partnerships for making bidding for housing and regeneration projects too expensive.

Speaking at the British Urban Regeneration Association鈥檚 conference last Wednesday, Pidgley said companies with a proven track record should be required to undergo a full prequalification process when submitting bids. They should be given the equivalent of a 鈥渒itemark鈥� instead.

鈥淚t costs 拢200,000 just to prequalify 鈥� it鈥檚 ridiculous,鈥� he said.

He also attacked the number of bodies involved in planning. 鈥淚t鈥檚 become a political football with too many people checking it, with Cabe and the Greater London Authority. The average time it takes to get permission has increased from one year to three to five in the past decade.鈥�

Alan Bates, EP鈥檚 regional manager, defended its procurement process. He said: 鈥淭he reason you spend 拢200,000, if that, is that we are pressing our bidders for high-quality schemes.鈥�

It costs 拢200,000 just to prequalify 鈥� it鈥檚 ridiculous

Tony Pidgley, Berkeley

The conference had earlier heard David Lock, the former government chief planning adviser, warn that proposed rules on density would make the provision of family housing impossible in city centres.

Referring to the proposed minimum density for 鈥渦rban鈥� areas in draft Planning Policy Statement 3, Lock said: 鈥淚t鈥檚 not possible to provide houses with gardens at 70 dwellings a hectare 鈥� it鈥檚 now planning policy that families can鈥檛 live in city centres.鈥�

But he noted that in EP鈥檚 development at Broughton in Milton Keynes, density standards of 30-50 dwellings a hectare had led to problems as the roads were becoming clogged by cars, which made rubbish collection difficult.

He said the solution was to revive minimum space standards within and between homes.