‘We need better designed houses’ says the new Prime Minister

The £27m sale of the Black Lion pub in Kensington has once again turned the spotlight onto change of use, but converting a pub into prime resi is no easy task, says Rachel Lee...

"Planning should not be the exclusive preserve of lawyers, developers or town hall officials," pronounces the Planning Minister Nick Boles in a statement of intent for the planning process.

There are clearly issues surrounding how affordable housing is delivered in the capital, but the tone of this 'poor door' debate risks throwing the baby out with the bathwater, says real estate lawyer Edward…