“Don’t interfere. We will deal with the detail, thank you!” That was the advice offered to the next mayor of London by Robert Davis, deputy leader of Westminster city council and cabinet member for the built environment, this morning.
Davis spoke to EG at the Movers and Shakers’ Central London Development – What Next? debate at the Dorchester hotel, W1.
Industry heavyweights Tony Pidgley of Berkley Group, Toby Courtauld, chief executive of Great Portland Estate, and Sir Terry Farrell joined Davis as panellists at the discussion.
With thoughts on how the mayoral election next year would affect development in the capital, Davies stressed that the next mayor should act as a strategic authority and leave the council to deal with the nitty gritty.
Panellists agreed that regeneration around the Olympics and “Boris bikes” would be Boris Johnson’s legacy, while Courtauld cited “enthusiasm” as the defining feature of Johnson’s tenure, saying the next mayor needed to share his positivity for the capital.
