“Polish prince” John Zylinski, who has amassed a fortune developing luxury flats in London, outlines his platform as he campaigns to be the capital’s next mayor
John Zylinski believes he is in the running to achieve every property developer’s secret dream.
“I would be in a position where I give the planning permissions,” the London mayoral candidate says. “Ha ha!”
The so-called “Polish prince” and developer behind such residential schemes as the White House in Ealing, W5, is standing as an independent mayoral candidate in London after being rejected by the Conservative Party in the first round.
The son of aristocrat Polish captain Andrzej Zylinski, he made his first foray into UK politics in 2015 with a viral video clip challenging Nigel Farage to a duel over the Ukip leader’s anti-mass migration statements.
Now, he jokes, he wants to brandish his sword at protestors outside City Hall.
“The mayor of London has vast planning powers which Boris has never used because, like all politicians, he’s scared of the protesters,” he says.
“I’ve been dealing with the protestors for 30 years. I’ve had umpteen planning permissions, appeals, judicial reviews, I’ve been in and out of the high court loads of times.
“None of that fazes me. You’ve got to negotiate with people, you’ve got to consult and so on. But above all, you’ve got to win.”
Zylinski says he has made a fortune over the past 30 years converting London properties into more than 100 flats. He won’t disclose his personal wealth, but says people should be able to get an idea of his worth from the fact that he gave his wife 35 London flats when they divorced two years ago.
All the mainstream party candidates have pledged to build 200,000 homes over their four-year term if elected. Zylinksi says he would build a million. How would he achieve it?
“I’ve got courage, which means I would use the mayor’s planning powers. He [Boris Johnson] called in 12 schemes in eight years. I would call in 12 schemes a day. I’d just bloody well issue the planning permissions myself.”
He says he would also get the mayor acting as developer, releasing public land for housing at a much faster pace than Johnson has achieved.
“The mayor owns thousands of acres of London through Transport for London and it’s very simple,” he says.
“You just get the map and you tell the people ‘build as much as you can on TfL land’. Or rather, do outline schemes for these thousands of acres and then sell off the land and then a developer can come along and do it.”
Zylinski says he would not build on green belt land, citing a London First report that found there was enough room in the capital for almost 1.3m new homes without touching the green belt.
Solving the affordable housing crisis can be done only by building a million homes, he adds. “It’s supply and demand. If you’ve got a garden and it rains for 24 hours, all the plants will grow.
“So if we really turbo-charge housebuilding, all the categories will benefit, even if we go for something like 30% affordable or even 20% – across 1m homes that means 200,000 affordable homes – paid for, basically, by the disgusting capitalists, who will turn out not to be disgusting after all.”
Is he in with a chance of winning? Zylinski laughs, saying: “I’m not going to win, but I can’t lose either.” Getting his voice heard is enough for now.
Zylinski on Sadiq Khan: “Hasn’t got a clue about property.”
Zylinski on Zac Goldsmith: “Track record as MP of sitting on the fence over development.”
Zylinski on the Garden Bridge: “I don’t give a damn. We’ll do what the people want… It’s only a bridge with tulips on it, after all.”
Zylinski on green belt: “There’s room enough in London for 1.3m homes without touching the green belt.”
Zylinski on tall buildings: “If they’re in the right place, build 10,000.”
Zylinski on Heathrow: “If I had a magic wand I would close the whole bloody thing.”
Zylinski on Brexit: “Vote out, bank on second referendum to secure a better deal to stay in.”
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