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Reforming judicial review for infrastructure
A Policy Paper has been published on this subject.
The Government wants to reduce delays in the delivery of nationally important infrastructure, as in the Banner review but also the Fingleton review on enabling nuclear delivery through regulatory reform.
A Government-backed indemnification scheme is proposed to give developers greater financial certainty when facing legal challenge; and the NSIP judicial review reforms will be extended to other major planning regimes, including those under the Town and Country Planning Act.
West London Regional Park
The West London Regional Park has been proposed to combine green areas and water routes to promote climate resilience and economic development.
Ealing and Hounslow Councils, Canal and River Trust, The National Trust, Environment Agency and the Mayor are developing this legacy landscape of green spaces. The project is supported by the West London and Park Royal Business Group led by Andrew Dakers.
The details on their website highlight the extent of existing green spaces and waterways and will be updated as the project evolves.
Local Audit Reform
In December 2025 a policy paper on Local Audit Reform was published following a significant backlog of outstanding unaudited local authority accounts. The English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill established the Local Audit Office (LAO) to oversee and improve the system requiring local public bodies to publish independently audited accounts on time annually.
Bill Butler has been announced as preferred candidate for chair of the Local Audit Office, subject to a Parliamentary hearing.
A new consultation on preventing financial mismanagement in local government runs from [more…]
How to petition Parliament
There has been a relaunch of Parliament’s e-petitions website, with a refreshed design and improved functionality to make it easier to find, sign and start petitions. The updated site includes improved accessibility, and enhanced search tools. The changes follow user feedback and aim to provide a smoother experience. Petitions are one way the public can raise issues with the UK Government and Parliament. Petitions that receive 10,000 signatures receive a Government response, and those that reach 100,000 are considered for debate by the Petitions Committee.
Old Kent Road development – update
Urban Design London has issued another video on what is happening in the Old Kent Road Opportunity Area.
An update on 13th May 2026 had links to earlier videos.
In the latest one, Colin Wilson reflects on the challenges – and successes – of adding cycle lanes and a district heat network during an estate regeneration, with the additional complication and benefit of uncovering the Roman road that sits underneath the Old Kent Road.
High Value Council Tax Surcharge
There is a consultation ending on 14th July 2026 on a proposed High Value Council Tax Surcharge (HVCTS) on owners of homes for each £500,000 of value above £2 million.
The Forum will respond to the consultation and we urge members to send to chair@londonforum.org.uk any comments or suggestions on points London Forum ought to make by 26 June 2026.
There are four questions in the main part of the consultation to which responses can be submitted by societies, which we urge you to do, through the online survey or [more…]
Crystal Palace National Sports Centre Redevelopment
The GLA’s redevelopment of the Crystal Palace National Sports Centre will cut carbon emissions by 90% and eliminate fossil fuels through a £23m investment in efficiency and heat pumps. While the project sits in Bromley, it follows the GLA’s climate-focused policies rather than Bromley Council’s, which largely ignores carbon reduction and has yet to declare a climate emergency.
As Bromley consults on its local plan this summer, the public is urged to use the GLA project as a benchmark. Because councils are legally required to address climate change, [more…]
Building the Homes London needs
Centre for London has published a long report with recommendations on how London’s housing crisis could be resolved.
The announcement of their report provides details of the background to London’s housing crisis and outlines their recommendations.
The document discusses the London housing crisis, framing it as a matter of supply and demand. It explores how well current housing needs are met and reviews the effectiveness of policies aimed at improving housing availability. Solutions proposed include expanding local authorities’ capacity to manage homes and addressing demand-side inefficiencies.
![Crews Hill Station [Photo: Enfield Society]](https://i0.wp.com/www.londonforum.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/Crews-Hill-station-1024x614-1.jpg?fit=1024%2C614&ssl=1)
Response to New Towns Draft Programme Consultation
We’ve responded to the government’s New Towns Draft Programme Consultation.
The Forum does not support the classifying inner-urban developments or Green Belt extensions as ‘New Towns’. We argue that proposals like Chase Park/Crews Hill (Enfield) and South Barking do not possess the geographic or socioeconomic separation required to build a ‘clear and distinct identity’. Instead, we view these as vehicles designed to accelerate housing delivery while bypassing standard national Green Belt protections and planning scrutiny.
Major Concerns & Recommendations
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Green Belt [more…]
![E-bike fire Shepherds Bush [photo: LFB]](https://i0.wp.com/www.londonforum.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/ebike-fire-shepherds-bush.webp?fit=700%2C525&ssl=1)
More social housing
The King’s Speech included proposed legislation to increase investment in social housing.
The Social Housing Bill was introduced into the House of Lords on 14th May. It is to protect much-needed social housing stock, give affordable housing providers the clarity and confidence they need to build more social homes, and better protect tenants.
The Minister Mathew Pennycook MP wrote to Council Leaders to explain the purpose of the Bill as here.
The progress in Parliament of the Bill can be seen here.
Planning Fees consultation response
We’ve responded to the government’s consultation on planning application fees.
While the proposal to set a National Default Fee Schedule at 90% of estimated costs is a step in the right direction, we argue that it’s too blunt an instrument. London’s planning costs are significantly higher than the national average — due to heritage requirements, high-density development complexity, and staffing costs — yet the consultation lacks transparency about how the funding shortfall is distributed across local planning authorities (LPAs). For each category there should be a [more…]