Moves to protect gardens from development will set the mayor of London on a collision course with central government, according to the Royal Town Planning Institute
In the revised London Plan, published on Thursday, Boris Johnson set out a 鈥済eneral presumption鈥� against building on gardens.
Michael Fearn, consultation secretary for the RTPI鈥檚 London branch, said: 鈥淚f this gets through, it could make it harder for developers to develop. Boris鈥� move against the so-called 鈥榞arden grab鈥� sets him on course for clashes with central government.鈥�
Gardens are classified as brownfield land, which is prioritised for redevelopment under the government鈥檚 national planning policy.
Fearn added that the plan did not say how London would find land for 23,000 homes.
A spokesperson for the communities department said: 鈥淐ouncils can already set local policies that protect gardens and separate them out from brownfield development targets.鈥�
Judith Damerell, a planning partner at solicitor Eversheds, warned that the change might cause problems for councils, which will have to "do their background work鈥� into how best to achieve a balance between new homes and gardens.
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