The Public Examination of the Council’s vision for the next fifteen years in the Borough, currently being heard at York House, is beginning in part to look like a prequel to the Planning Inquiry about the Brewery Planning Applications. On the second day of the hearing the Inspectors expressed concern about the Council’s position on affordable housing in the Local Plan. The Council appears to have set itself against the London Plan, perhaps for political or financial reasons, but also against National Guidance and binding legislation.

The arguments are complex but in an attempt to simplify – and at the risk of over-simplication – there are two concepts worth considering. The first is the Fast Track Route (FTR) approach which seeks to incentivise developers to achieve a minimum level of affordable housing, 35% for private land and 50% on public or industrial land. The scheme is intended to speed up the planning process to the benefit of all.

The scheme adopted by the Council is the Viability Tested Route (VTR). This sets a 50% affordable housing target for all sites and requires that any scheme not achieving that is subject to viability testing on a case by case basis.

The problem for Richmond is that in practice their VTR is achieving unacceptably low levels of affordable housing, around 12% on average over the last five years, and given the intended 7% for the Brewery development, dropping even further.

In an earlier posting it was said that motivations for the Council’s policy on the Brewery development would be explored. The motivation for their rigid position on affordable housing is unfathomable. Is it based on political or administrative ignorance or lack of understanding, or is there some ulterior motive hidden in the dark recesses of York House?