Michael Gove pauses plan to tear down Museum of London and

• Levelling up secretary intervenes to put a hold on the plans to raze old buildings
• More than 800 people objected to replacing museum with ‘bulbous’ new-builds

Michael Gove has hit pause on plans to demolish the former Museum of London and Barbican House to replace them with a flashy new office complex after the proposals were green-lit by local councillors earlier today.

The secretary of state for levelling up, housing and communities has issued a ‘holding directive’ on London Wall West even after the City of London Corporation’s planning sub-committee approved it despite over 800 objections from locals.

Museum bosses closed the doors of the Barbican site in 2022 in order to facilitate a relocation to Smithfield General Market – clearing the way for a dramatic redevelopment of the site even as residents voiced their opposition.

But Mr Gove’s move temporarily puts a halt on the proposals despite councillors signing them off on Wednesday. The Article 31 direction ‘directs (the council) not to grant permission without specific authorisation’.

Sixteen councillors voted in support of the plans – which were submitted on behalf of the City of London Corporation itself – while eight voted against them, with one abstention.

The contentious new plans for the Museum of London redevelopment at Barbican, which have been green-lit

The Corporation is behind the plans – and its own planning committee signed them off, though several councillors either voted against them or abstained

Communities secretary Michael Gove, who has intervened to consider whether the Museum of London plans should be considered by him before allowing them to proceed

The Museum of London closed in 2022 to facilitate a move to a new base at Smithfields General Market and allow redevelopment to proceed

Bastion House (above) will also go in the plans – if Mr Gove does not put his foot down and refuse the Corporation’s permit

But campaigners called for the site to be retained and redeveloped rather than being demolished altogether (pictured: impressions of the new site)

Campaigners have welcomed Mr Gove’s move, as they called for the City to rethink its plans to demolish the 1970s fixture.

The Corporation has previously been forced to scale back the plans following furious public consultation, with the building’s size reduced following concerns from locals about its imposing scale.

Barbican Quarter Action, a group calling for the building to be saved, said after the plans were approved by the Corporation: ‘We are obviously disappointed by the committee’s decision, but not surprised.

READ MORE: Campaigners fight to save Museum of London and nearby Bastion House from ‘short-sighted’ plans 

‘Gove will now either call in the application for determination or allow the City of London to issue its planning permission.

‘We hope the secretary of state will decide that the application should be referred to him.

‘The City is both application and the local planning authority and as such this complex and contested scheme must be subject to the highest levels of scrutiny.’

The group had previously labelled the new plans ‘bulbous’.

Mr Gove previously lost a High Court battle to stop the demolition of the Marks and Spencer store at Marble Arch, after he pushed for the Art Deco building to be redeveloped rather than torn down.

Judges ruled that he had ‘misinterpreted’ national planning policy in mounting his defence of the department store complex.

The City of London Corporation did not allude to the stop put to its approval by the levelling up secretary in a statement it issued on Wednesday, saying only that it has ‘resolved to grant permission’ for the redevelopment.

It has promised a 43 per cent increase in publicly usable space around the Barbican complex should it go ahead, with an ‘elevated public space’ as well as a new public square and 100 trees to improve biodiversity.

‘With employment in the City projected to rise significantly in the coming years, the scheme will deliver around 56,000 sqm of much needed new office space of the highest environmental standards, to accommodate nearly 3,100 jobs,’ it said.

Locals had called for the building to be repurposed without demolition, citing environmental concerns, but the City maintains that building a new complex was the greener option in the long run.

The former Museum of London and Bastion House will be demilished to make way for the new projects – unless Mr Gove is minded to investigate the plans further

Smithfields General Market will be redeveloped into the new home of the Museum of London, half a mile away from its former site

Artists impressions of the site show it will be an airier and more welcoming space, according to museum bosses

But campaigners have remained resolute that the best course of action is to re-develop the existing building rather than demolish it

Modern planning policies refer to ‘whole life carbon’ or ’embodied carbon’ – the full carbon emission output associated with a building from its construction to its use and potentially its eventual demolition.

The City statement continued: ‘A Whole Life Carbon assessment of the proposals was also carried out and found that demolition and redevelopment of the site achieved the most sustainable outcome.’

It said this was based on the fact the new building could accommodate more people, improve the ‘public realm’ around it, and be constructed as a ‘leading edge, sustainable’ project.

Developers are split on whether many older buildings can be sustainably salvaged to preserve their architecture, compared to more environmentally friendly new-builds.

Alistair Watson, planning partner at law firm Taylor Wessing, told the Financial Times:  ‘It’s got local stakeholders. It’s got heritage. It’s got embodied carbon. And everyone has their opinion.’

He added of the fact the building has heritage attached: ‘It’s very delicate. That nuanced element makes it open to challenge. It makes decisions like this very complex, extremely fraught and finely balanced.’

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