LREF 2016: More central government funding is needed to help the shortage of housing in the capital, according to James Murray, the new deputy mayor of London for housing.
Speaking at the opening reception of the London Real Estate Forum in Berkeley Square, W1, last night, Murray also said he wanted the Greater London Authority to be able to retain more of the tax revenues that are generated in the city.
He said: “When we talk about getting funding right for London that has to include getting the right funding settlement from government and that it recognises the scale of the challenge we face in London.
“We need to make the case for London retaining more of its own resources to reinvest in housing.”
Murray said that the GLA would “play a more active role” in using public land more effectively and quickly by working with other public sector bodies such as the NHS and Network Rail, following on from work already undertaken by the London Land Commission to map the publicly owned land in London.
“We need a programme where the GLA can work with the public sector authorities to bring forward land that is genuinely surplus to requirement and start building quickly,” he said.
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