- A judge ruled that Gove’s decision to block the redevelopment was illegal
- M&S chief operating officer Sacha Berendji said the ruling “could not be clearer”
- The Secretary of Housing will have to review the plans
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Marks & Spencer has won a High Court battle against Michael Gove after he blocked plans to demolish and redevelop its flagship store on Oxford Street.
In a victory for the High Street favorite in its bid to redevelop the site, a judge ruled the Housing Secretary’s decision was unlawful.
M&S chief operating officer Sacha Berendji said the ruling “could not be clearer”.
Gove will have to review the plans, which M&S believes will help revitalize the area and boost its own business.
In July 2023, MP for Surrey Heath refused M&S permission to demolish the 1929 art deco building near Marble Arch and build a much larger ten-storey office and retail block.
Shame: Gove and what the new Marble Arch store would look like
But, to the Government’s embarrassment, High Court Judge Ms Lieven yesterday concluded that it had made a series of errors in its interpretation and application of planning policy. She agreed with M&S’s arguments on five of the six charges the retailer brought last year.
“He (Secretary of State) has not applied the policy, he has rewritten it,” the judge said in her 30-page ruling.
He also criticized Gove’s claim that there would only be “limited” damage to the wider area if the plans were rejected. His decision came even after M&S threatened to leave the central London shopping street and an independent planning inspector concluded there would be “significant harm” to the area. Judge Lieven said Gove “fails to explain why he comes to this conclusion”.
Last year, M&S boss Stuart Machin called Gove’s decision “absolutely pathetic” and “pointless”. He accused the minister of taking “an anti-business approach, stifling growth and denying Oxford Street hundreds of thousands of quality new jobs”.
Berendji said: “The result has been a long, unnecessary and costly delay to the only retail-led regeneration on Oxford Street that would create one of London’s greenest buildings, create thousands of jobs and rejuvenate the main shopping district. From the capital”. Gove had justified his initial decision on property and environmental grounds. But his decree collided with support for the plan from local authorities and businesses.
A spokesperson for the Department of Levelling, Housing and Communities said: “We recognize the ruling and are considering our next steps.”
Some of Britain’s leading architects, including London Eye designer Julia Barfield and Grand Designs presenter Kevin McCloud, opposed the plan.
James Souter, partner at law firm Charles Russell Speechlys, said: “Today’s decision will be embarrassing for the Government. However, this does not automatically mean that planning permission will be granted – the Government will have to re-determine the resource and , in theory, could still refuse planning permission.’