The British Property Federation (BPF) and the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (ODPM) have called for a “new culture of partnership” between developers and government to deliver urban regeneration.
Speaking at a BPF event at the Labour Party Conference in Blackpool today, Ian Henderson, president of the BPF, said: “What we need are politicians with leadership and vision and a private sector which seizes the initiative.”
Tony McNulty, planning, housing and regeneration minister at the ODPM, told delegates from local government, community groups and the BPF: “Essentially we can do anything with the private sector as partners, from large-scale projects to smaller scale community projects.
“We must get away from the impression that developers are evil rapacious people with horns and that politicians are just idiots with votes.”
The minister said that the government would try to make regeneration projects easier for developers by improving incentives for brownfield development.
He added: “More work can be done on tax benefits. There is some money for remediation from EU funding but more needs to be done.”
EGi News 02/10/02
