Joint housing minister Stephen Greenhalgh has responded to questions over whether the civil service had knowledge of Robert Jenrick’s contact with Richard Desmond prior to approving the £1bn Westferry Printworks.
Labour peer and former transport secretary Lord Adonis tabled parliamentary questions asking if the department knew of Jenrick having met Desmond months before he approved the 1,524-home development.
The calls for scrutiny followed Jenrick’s admission of “apparent bias” in approving the scheme days before Tower Hamlets introduced a new CIL regime expected to cost Desmond’s company Northern & Shell £40m.
Jenrick overruled Tower Hamlets council, the Greater London Authority and the planning inspector with his approval on 14 January. Desmond then made a £12,000 donation to the Conservative party on 29 January, records from the Electoral Commission confirm.
In his response, Greenhalgh said: “Planning ministers act in accordance with the MHCLG guidance on planning proprietary issues.”
The 2012 guidance stipulates: “Privately made representations should not be entertained unless other parties have been given the chance to consider them and comment.”
If any meeting is held, a note of the meeting should be kept and “in some cases” this may need to be circulated to interested parties, which would include the planning inspector and case officers.
Greenhalgh did not confirm if the secretary of state had informed the permanent secretary or MHCLG of any previous contact with Desmond or his company and if any action was taken as a result.
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