Sustainable Communities, Housing and Planning

Part of the debate – in the House of Commons at 1:21 pm on 18 July 2002.

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Photo of John Prescott John Prescott Deputy Prime Minister, Office of the Deputy Prime Minister, Deputy Prime Minister and Secretary of State for Local Government and the Regions, Deputy Leader of the Labour Party, Member, Labour Party National Executive Committee 1:21, 18 July 2002

The hon. Gentleman makes an important point about industrial buildings, which we have seized on. We could get much more from such buildings. The designs of industrial buildings in some parts of our towns are a disgrace. They may win architectural awards, but I notice that the architects do not live in them. In such circumstances, it would be useful to combine the two aims. The Peabody Trust is doing some interesting work on that. Building design is important and I want to see more of it. It adds to the confidence of an area. That is why we recently produced a study on the built environment. I am keen on that and have already talked to a number of architects and developers to ensure that building design is taken into account.