The political furore in the London borough of Haringey over a proposed 6,500-home joint venture with Lendlease has thrown a harsh spotlight on the hugely contentious world of estate regeneration. Following an intense local row, which culminated in the resignation of former council leader Claire Kober, the £2bn deal, for which Lendlease has been preferred bidder for a year, now looks likely to be dropped within weeks. 

While much of the national media attention has been due to its relevance as a symbolic fight between different wings of the Labour Party, the row has also revealed the scale of local anger over proposals, which would have seen some residents’ homes demolished, and the land they sat on transferred out of direct council ownership. 

What Haringey had proposed was in many ways a classic public-private partnership right out of the New Labour playbook. But in the populist post-Brexit political world, the real concerns of local people could not be ignored. 

“Particularly in Labour authorities, it’s now politically unacceptable to do deals with the private sector. It’s pretty much off the table”

Chris Brown, Igloo

…