<div id="readability-page-1">  <p><time datetime="2026-03-30T15:21:03+01:00">    Monday 30 March 2026 3:21 pm  </time></p>         <div>                                                                                                                 Add as a preferred        source on Google                        </div>    <figure>    <div>       </div> <img width="742" height="495" src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://www.cityam.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/Untitled-design-30-1.jpg/query-dz03NDI?x-oss-process=image/auto-orient,1/interlace,1/resize,w_1440,h_1440/quality,q_95/format,jpg" original-src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://www.cityam.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/Untitled-design-30-1.jpg/query-dz03NDI"/>  <figcaption>Office space squeeze risks 'constraining' growth (Photo: Turner &amp; Townsend)</figcaption> </figure> <p>The capital’s largest developers have called on the government to introduce emergency measures to solve London’s office space crisis, which risks “constraining” growth.</p><p>London Property Alliance (LPA) is urging the government to designate offices as critical economic infrastructure to address dwindling supply and boost economic growth.</p><p>The LPA represents the capital’s largest property developers and investors, comprising the Westminster and City property associations.</p><p>Central London has lost 14m sq ft of office space since 2018, according to the LPA, who say the capital is attracting huge amounts of investment but may no longer be able to support it with the commercial space needed.</p><p>London topped the LPA’s ranking of other top cities – including New York, Paris and Hong Kong – as the best destination for foreign direct investment, but may not have space for it.</p><p>More than 7m sq ft of London’s lost office space was in Westminster, where planning applications fell by 75 per cent between 2013 and 2024.</p><h2 id="h-vacancy-rate-as-low-as-0-8-per-cent">Vacancy rate as low as 0.8 per cent</h2><p>The West End is facing the most acute office shortfall, the LPA’s research found, with London’s average 7 per cent vacancy rate crashing to 0.8 per cent in this area.</p><p>The scarcity of supply is pushing up rents in the West End – rising more than 15 per cent in 2025, the most than any global city analysed by the LPA – and only 17 companies relocated in the last quarter.</p><p>Average vacancy rates are more than double London’s in Manhattan, at more than 20 per cent.</p><p>Alexander Jan, chief economic adviser at the LPA, told <em>City AM</em>: “If London is to turn its global investment lead into jobs and growth, it needs a sustained pipeline of high quality office space in the West End. Without that, the capital risks constraining its own success.”</p><p>The group projects an office space shortfall of nearly 11m sq ft in central London over the next five years.</p><p>London’s economic growth is slowing, the LPA said, with its finance and insurance sector contracting by 0.2 per cent last year, while the same sector in New York grew by 6.1 per cent.</p><p>The growth of GDP in the capital is set to slow to 1.2 per cent this year, while growth in New York and Hong Kong stands higher at 2.8 and 2.7 per cent. </p><h2 id="h-g-ive-offices-same-priority-as-data-centres-say-developers"><b>G</b>ive offices same priority as data centres, say developers</h2><p>As much as £84bn in economic output and £11bn in rental income is up for grabs if the 147m sq ft of “secondary” office space in central London was upgraded to meet occupier standards, the LPA said.</p><p>The government could unlock this growth by designating office space as “critical economic infrastructure” under its national planning policy framework, which would give offices the same planning weight as data centres.</p><p>Charles Begley, LPA’s chief executive, said: “London’s position as the world’s leading destination for international investment is a remarkable strength, particularly at a time when global uncertainty is pushing capital towards cities with stability and strong underlying fundamentals. </p><p>“But it is in danger of winning the race for investment and then failing to provide the commercial space required for growth.”</p><p>Earlier this month, researchers at Turner &amp; Townsend revealed the cost of building a skyscraper in London has soared by 40 per cent in the last five years.</p><p>The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government has been contacted for comment.</p> </div>

IUKP

<p>倫敦最大的開發商正在敦促政府採取緊急措施，以應對威脅經濟增長的辦公空間短缺問題。倫敦地產聯盟（LPA）指出，自 2018 年以來，倫敦失去了 1400 萬平方英尺的辦公空間，西區的空置率驟降至 0.8%。LPA 預計，在未來五年內，倫敦市中心將面臨近 1100 萬平方英尺的短缺，警告稱如果沒有足夠的辦公空間，首都的經濟成功將面臨制約。他們主張將辦公空間視為關鍵經濟基礎設施，以釋放潛在的增長</p>

倫敦的開發商呼籲採取緊急措施，以應對辦公空間的緊張局面