• Reference: 2025/4775
• Question by: James Small-Edwards
• Meeting date: 18 December 2025

What assessment has the Mayor made of the Government’s proposed default ‘yes’ to development around train stations, and how will City Hall ensure that such developments in London still meet local design, affordable housing, and infrastructure standards?

• Reference: 2025/4774
• Question by: James Small-Edwards
• Meeting date: 18 December 2025

With London boroughs reporting significant shortages in specialist planning skills, particularly sustainability and digital expertise, how will the Planning Careers Hub announced in the Autumn Budget support London’s efforts to rebuild planning capacity?

• Reference: 2025/4773
• Question by: James Small-Edwards
• Meeting date: 18 December 2025

How many additional planners would need to be allocated in London to meaningfully address the capital’s planning capacity deficit, and has the Mayor made this case to Ministers?

• Reference: 2025/4772
• Question by: James Small-Edwards
• Meeting date: 18 December 2025

What assessment has the Mayor made of how the Government’s £48 million investment in planning capacity and the recruitment of 350 additional planners will benefit London boroughs specifically, and how many of these posts does he expect to be allocated in London?

• Reference: 2025/4771
• Question by: James Small-Edwards
• Meeting date: 18 December 2025

I was fortunate enough to visit the Clamart Panorama development near Paris recently. It is widely cited as a successful example of beautiful, affordable mid-rise neighbourhood design. What assessment has the Mayor made of comparable opportunities for human-scaled, five- to seven-storey regeneration in London?

• Reference: 2025/4770
• Question by: James Small-Edwards
• Meeting date: 18 December 2025

What kind of density and design principles would you like new towns such as Thamesmead to adopt? Particularly regarding mid-rise development, walkability, mixed uses, and access to green and blue infrastructure?

• Reference: 2025/4769
• Question by: James Small-Edwards
• Meeting date: 18 December 2025

Given the scale of development unlocked by the DLR extension, what delivery model does the Mayor consider most appropriate for a new town in Thamesmead, and would a Mayoral Development Corporation be his preferred approach?

• Reference: 2025/4768
• Question by: James Small-Edwards
• Meeting date: 18 December 2025

How will the new DLR connection to Thamesmead support London’s wider housing targets, and what steps will the Mayor take to ensure the extension underpins a sustainable, mixed-use new town rather than creating an isolated, commuter-led town?

• Reference: 2025/4767
• Question by: James Small-Edwards
• Meeting date: 18 December 2025

With the welcome news that Government funding is now confirmed for the DLR extension to Thamesmead, what assessment has the Mayor made of how this investment will shape the viability, scale, and delivery timeline of the proposed Thamesmead New Town, and how will City Hall ensure that homes and infrastructure come forward together?

• Reference: 2025/4766
• Question by: James Small-Edwards
• Meeting date: 18 December 2025

How many children in London will be lifted out of poverty because of the removal of the two-child benefit limit?