I was dismayed to read that Greenwich council’s response to planning breaches is demolition (‘No one wants to lose their home’: London renters shocked at order to raze their flats, 27 September). Surely local authorities have more useful and constructive (not destructive) enforcement powers?
For example, they should be able to instruct the developer to carry out remedial works or mitigation works for impacts that cannot reasonably be remediated; to carry out works directly and recover costs; and to fine the developer for the breach, as a proportion of the development costs or whole life profit.
The council should only be permitted to demolish property if all reasonable measures have been exhausted. Demolition is a waste of resources, financially, economically, environmentally and socially. This cannot be acceptable in today’s world.
I’m not a resident of Greenwich, or London. I live in the north, where we abhor waste.
Ian Knight
Chester
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