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• Question by: Tony Arbour
• Meeting date: 11 July 2001

I am a little concerned about your desire for there to be a dynamic skyline in London. One of the great things about London is the residents' sense of place, and familiarity, and neighbourhood, and one of the things which actually ties Londoners into London are indeed the strategic views, and not necessarily just strategic. In my patch the strategic view is of the city spread before me from Richmond Park, for example. And I am not certain I want to see that dynamically changed. But I really want to ask you, what is the place of familiarity, as far...

• Question by: Nicky Gavron
• Meeting date: 11 July 2001

I just picked out that you talked about the view of the Tower of London, and I noticed the other day when I was shown lots and lots of views of Renzo Piano's proposed building for London Bridge that it actually rises directly behind the rather famous view of the Tower of London. What would you say to that?

• Question by: Trevor Phillips
• Meeting date: 11 July 2001

I may be misleading you. We can argue about how high and all of that stuff. But specifically you were talking about the skyline which is not a one dimensional thing, it is actually about the shape of it, it is about a vision of it. Now what I am really wanting is what you actually have in mind about what that vision might be and where it is determined and how toughly it can be enforced?

• Question by: Trevor Phillips
• Meeting date: 11 July 2001

What you would stop?

• Question by: Angie Bray
• Meeting date: 11 July 2001

I for one feel slightly concerned at the way buildings can be spot listed, bringing all sorts of inconveniences on the way with it. But I wondered whether there might be a way of evening up the playing field, if I can put it that way. The Chief Executive of one of London's larger estates suggested to me, what about the idea of "black marking" buildings? Some of those buildings that have been left standing idle, often falling into ruin, and are real eyesores. There should be some system of "black marking" them for demolition unless a case can be...

• Question by: Sally Hamwee
• Meeting date: 11 July 2001

We have heard from you this morning that views are important. But also that views change. In a world where one has to deal both with the overall plan and then with individual development control applications, how can we ensure that in getting from one to the other we are not ruining the city? I do not know how to reconcile statements that views are important and looking after views is important and also that views can be allowed to change. I do not know what the mechanisms are that should be applied.

• Question by: John Biggs
• Meeting date: 11 July 2001

If I could take the liberty of asking a question I asked of witnesses at the SDS. For probably a majority of Londoners the key views nowadays are the London skyline as you steam down the M11, or the site at Canary Wharf as you come down the A20 off the M25, so they are very distant views and they are very much car driven views, and I think many people would think that they are enhanced by high buildings and the more sort of long distance skyline. Do you have a view on that?

• Question by: Trevor Phillips
• Meeting date: 11 July 2001

It was all going very well until you mentioned skyline. You say it is a mess but I wonder why -- it has always been a mess. The mess that we see in Canaletto may be a different sort of mess than the one we have got now, but the point I want to make really is, it has almost grown organically. What have you in mind to sort it out?

• Question by: Trevor Phillips
• Meeting date: 11 July 2001

This is very interesting because what you seem to be suggesting - I am not going to offer judgment on it - is that we do have to make a choice and one choice is let it go and the other choice is a rather tougher, more dirigiste regulatory framework than currently exists. Now I am not going to make any analogy to soviet policies or anything like that but let's just be clear. You obviously have something in mind. How tough, how directed and by whom? Because that is obviously the way you would like to lead.

• Question by: Tony Arbour
• Meeting date: 11 July 2001

I would like to ask you about the conflict between the development of strategic sites and strategic views. In your view, if view is the appropriate word, should strategic views be sacrificed to economic regeneration and the development of the strategic sites?