A 'Homes for Londoners' team is to be established to boost the delivery of new houses in the capital.

Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, has started recruiting new experts to scrutinise 'viability assessments'.

The experts, who will be drawn from finance surveyors and property consultant experts, will support housing delivery by making planning decisions faster and more consistent, and by ensuring new developments include the maximum amount of affordable housing.

Mr Khan will also lead a new 'Homes for Londoners' board, formed of London Boroughs, housing associations, and developers. The board will oversee delivery, land assembly and investment decisions, and will draw on expertise from across the housing and property sectors to help develop new policy for the capital.

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Mr Khan, said: "Homeownership has been slipping increasingly out of reach for more and more Londoners, and rents have been getting harder and harder to afford. I want to be honest with Londoners from the start that it will take time to turn things around - we're starting from a position where last year the previous Mayor built the lowest number of affordable homes since records began.

"I am determined that Londoners get the same opportunities this great city gave me. That is why I am setting up my Homes for Londoners team to speed up homebuilding and to move towards 50 per cent of new homes in London being genuinely affordable to rent and buy."

A review of capacity and skills across the Greater London authority (GLA) will now get underway.

(CD/MH)