Our long-established, ever-popular programme at MIPIM continues to be one of the highlights of the 91¶¶Òù calendar. As the dust has now settled on this year’s festival, our team share some reflections.
Once again, 91¶¶Òù delivered a fantastic range of events to convene members and stakeholders including the boroughs and Mayoralty, with our Welcome Drinks Reception, Landing Dinner, Housing Lunch, relaunched London Lunch, and Women in Real Estate Brunch. As always, 91¶¶Òù at MIPIM provided the opportunity to gain exclusive insights and forge new, meaningful connections across the property and real estate sector – attracting more than 280 attendees across our four-day programme.
This year, we were especially delighted that Mayor Sir Sadiq Khan, making his first visit to MIPIM, was able to join us for our Welcome Drinks Reception, where he emphasised that growth is the watchword, encouraging all key players to adopt a London-first approach. We would also like to extend our thanks to Deputy Mayors Jules Pipe, Tom Copley, and Howard Dawber for joining us at our events.
Key takeaways:
The opportunity: As the Mayor observed, with a national government, the GLA, boroughs, and City of London corporation all on the same page, the capital is uniquely well positioned to overcome the barriers to growth and seize the opportunity to compete on the global stage.
Time to be bold on growth: The size of the prize is enormous: as the Mayor’s Growth Plan sets out, the fulfilment of City Hall’s ambitious growth targets could see the UK economy boosted by £107 billion over the next decade – equating to £11,000 more per Londoner annually.
A pivotal year for housing: Deputy Mayor for Housing and Residential Development Tom Copley emphasised that 2025 represents a turning point for housing in the capital: strategies including private investment subsidies, public-private partnerships, and new towns – as we’ve set out in our recent report – all have the potential to solve the capital’s housing crisis, make significant longer-term cost savings for London councils, and meet ambitious housing targets. Combining existing Mayoral levers – and, potentially, new initiatives, such as the City Hall Developer – a delivery vehicle pledged by the Mayor to accelerate the delivery of low-cost housing in the capital. In our City Hall Developer report published last year, 91¶¶Òù and PwC outlined key recommendations for making this vision a success.
Ultimately, delivering the homes London needs will depend on collaboration across the entire industry, embracing emerging sectors such as Build to Rent and bringing forward new initiatives to ramp up delivery during challenging times for the sector.
Sustainable growth and resilience: As Deputy Mayor for Planning and Regeneration Jules Pipe noted, London’s historic resilience will be crucial to future-proofing its development. The London Plan review will prioritise climate-adaptive strategies and housing delivery, and tackle the stubborn obstacles, from planning delays and viability to infrastructure and utilities, holding development up. We are actively shaping the London Plan review, and our upcoming event on 24 April, Towards a London Plan: GLA Briefing, will provide the first opportunity for our members to participate in this critical reshaping of the London Plan.
Public-private collaboration is key: Solving London’s challenges, particularly in housing, will demand greater public-private cooperation. Streamlining the London Plan, empowering boroughs, and fostering community engagement will all play their part in meeting the goal of 88,000 new homes annually.
London’s global ambition: The transformation of Oxford Street speaks to the capital’s ambition to remain a leading global city and compete with cities such as Paris and New York – with public-private partnerships leading the charge. 91¶¶Òù is actively engaging with members and our West End Street Steering Group (WESt) to respond to the consultation that is currently underway on the Mayor’s ambitions to regenerate and pedestrianise Oxford Street.
While grey skies and rain may have dominated much of this year’s property festival, the overall mood among members and stakeholders was, by contrast, one of optimism and possibility – and a palpable sense of collective momentum.
As ever, we extend special thanks to our sponsors: Primera, Arcadis, Lendlease, Town Legal LLP, Landmark Chambers, and Royal Town Planning Institute.
Finally, a reminder that the deadline for the Building London Planning Awards (BLPA) of 1 April is fast approaching. For over two decades, the BLPA has been celebrating excellence in the built environment, with six new categories added to this year’s awards. Don’t miss the opportunity to have your work or that of your peers recognised for their transformative contribution to the capital. We still have some exciting sponsorship opportunities available for the awards, including the chance to showcase your leadership and expertise by joining our judging panel. Please contact Sean Fleetwood to find out more.
