• WE were surprised to see Labour’s claim in recent leaflets in Swiss Cottage that they would have stopped the gargantuan 24-storey tower at 100 Avenue Road. This – like the plans for 100 Avenue Road themselves – is wrong on every level.

First, far from being turned down by Camden’s administration, Camden Council’s officers recommended that the application be approved. This was a perplexing recommendation, as it clearly breached planning rules on conservation, loss of light, and lack of affordable housing.

Second, despite these failings, most of the seven Labour councillors on the planning committee did not oppose the tower – two voted for it and two abstained, whereas all three Conservatives opposed it. Indeed, Conservative councillors Don Williams, Roger Freeman, and Claire-Louise Leyland all spoke against it at the committee meeting.

Third, this decision to stop the tower was then upheld by the then-Conservative-run Greater London Authority, in a decision personally signed by the then-Conservative mayor.

Fourth, the Planning Inspectorate, which sadly – and we think legally misguidedly – overturned this decision, is not “the Conservative government”, as Swiss Cottage Labour allege. The secretary of state has the power to overrule a local council by “calling in” the decision, but he actually refused to.

As it was recommended for approval by both Camden’s own officers and the Planning Inspector, the High Court would have overturned any decision other than to approve it. This is a consequence of civil servants’ decisions, not of politicians’.

At the recent Combined Residents’ Association of South Hampstead (CRASH) hustings, residents were rightly incensed about the plans for 100 Avenue Road, and the cumulative impact with CS11 and HS2: both big projects that will bring chaos to Finchley Road and the surrounding residential roads.

Kate Fairhurst worked for three years on opposing HS2 and mitigating the damage caused by its construction, and she knows how complex construction plans can be. Navigating the next few years will require expertise and technical knowledge and also commitment to the fight, which a Conservative team will continue to show.

As the project is now in its Construction Management Plan phase, our focus must now be on ensuring that there is adequate mitigation in place for residents and the local area if this development goes ahead. We promise to continue working with the dedicated residents’ associations and individuals on this if elected.

Either Swiss Cottage and Belsize’s Labour candidates know little about the fight against 100 Avenue Road, or they know what they wrote was wrong. Only a vote for Conservative councillors on May 3 will result in proper opposition to this scheme.

KATE FAIRHURST
CALVIN ROBINSON
DON WILLIAMS
Conservative candidates for Swiss Cottage ward