London Docklands Development Corporation
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The London Docklands Development Corporation (LDDC) was a quango set up in 1981 to regenerate the Docklands area of east London. It was responsible for an area of 8.5 square miles (22 km²) in the London Boroughs of Newham, Tower Hamlets and Southwark.
It was established by the then Secretary of State for the Environment, Michael Heseltine, under section 136 of the Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980. It was financed by a grant from central government and from the proceeds from the disposal of land for development.
It stewardship saw the construction of the Docklands Light Railway and many architecturally-interesting buildings, including the tallest buildings presently in the UK at Canary Wharf. It was able to permit these to be built as controls on planning permission, normally controlled by the local boroughs, were handed to the LDDC.
It began a staged withdrawal in 1994 and was formally wound up in 1998. Under a process called "dedesignation" the powers it held reverted to the London Boroughs.
It withdrew from Bermondsey in 1994, followed by Beckton in 1995, the Surrey Docks in 1996, from Wapping, Limehouse and the Isle of Dogs in 1997, and finally from the Royal Docks in 1998.
Pre 1981
The area suffered substantial bomb damage during the second world war which lead to the need for a substantial rebuilding programme. In the first two decades after the second world war, many of the buildings in the docklands reached the end of their usefulness. There were several factors which contributed to the decline of the post dockland area. These include:
- London's role as the centre of world trade had declined during the years following World War 2, so, therefore, much of the dock space and warehousing was no longer needed.
- The area suffered due to larger, modern cargo ships not being able to negotiate their course up river. Also, advances in transport technology, most notably container ports meant that there was a need for deepwater docking facilities. These could only be found further downstream both down river in Tilbury and other parts of the UK, eliminating the need for cargo ships to travel up to the dockland area and reducing the economic viability of the docks.
- Many manufacturing activities were attracted by government incentives to 'New Towns' and other out-of-town sites where costs were lower. As a result of this, much of the canal and railway land had fallen derelict.
As a result of all these factors combined, the docks closed. East India dock was closed in 1967, and trade in the other docks began to fall. This had two main results:
- High rates of unemployment
- Derelict land
Between 1961 and 1971, almost 83,000 jobs were lost in the five boroughs in the Docklands area (Greenwich, Lewisham, Newham, Tower Hamlets and Southwark). A large percentage of these jobs were from large transnational corporations. The decline was heightened by government policies which favoured the growth of industry outside london. High unemployment was accompanied by population decline. Whilst inner London 10% of its population between 1961 and 1971, the figures for Tower Hamlets and Southwark were 18% and 16% respectivley.
The housing in the Docklands area was mostly council, terraced housing and flats.
During development
By the 1970's, London's Docklands had come to be recognised as 'the largest redevelopment opportunity in Europe'. The London Docklands Development Corporation (LDDC) was set up by Margaret Thatcher's conservative government in 1981. It was largley established by the then Secretary of State for the Environment, Michael Heseltine, under section 136 of the Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980. It was financed by a grant from central government and from the proceeds from the disposal of land for development. It was to 'take over the role' of local government and take responsibility for the development of the area. Its' main aim was to regenerate the Docklands area by:
- Improving the environment in and around the Docklands area.
- Creating a good environment for private investors, who invested 7.2 billion GBP in the area.
- Providing improved transport infrastructure in the area in the form of the Docklands Light Railway (DLR), London city airport as well as the consstruction of 145km of new and improves roads.
The scheme was funded by a grant from central government. In order to attract development and fill up the Isle of Dogs, new roads and office buildings were built such as the Docklands' flagship scheme--Canary Wharf.
From 1981, the Docklands saw the largest concentration of new house building in inner London. The tenure of this new housing was predominatley owner-occupied. The Docklands redevelopment coincided, and became synonymous with, the house price inflation boom, with prices spiraling rapidly.