Will London's 'garden state' fend off plans for a new town?
BBCA meeting with England's metro mayors to discuss how Labour's ambitious housebuilding targets can be met is being chaired by Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer on Thursday, amid opposition to plans for several new towns - including at Crews Hill in Enfield.
You'll find Crews Hill on the northern tip of the north London borough, just off the M25, bordering Hertfordshire. It has been dubbed London's "garden state" for its green and rural nature and its concentration of garden centres and horticultural businesses - quite a different feeling from some of its neighbouring, more urban areas within the borough.
A government proposal for a 21,000-home, 50% affordable housing new town in the village has split opinion locally - with opponents arguing it's not the right place, and that brownfield sites and empty homes should be prioritised to solve London's housing crisis - something Enfield's new Conservative council leader Alessandro Georgiou agrees with.
So much so, Georgiou says he intends to withdraw from the government's new town scheme.
Visiting the village, it would be easy to forget you're in London, even though the railway station at the top of the main high street connects commuters to Moorgate in 40 minutes - a reminder that you are, in fact, in close proximity to the centre of the bustling capital.
The village is green and spacious in nature, yet its distance from central London is perhaps an inviting selling-point for budding homeowners - now and into the future.
It's certainly something the government considered when, in September last year, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) shortlisted Crews Hill in its proposals for 12 new towns across England - two of which would be in London.
In March this year the government narrowed the list of potential new towns from 12 to seven, still including both London sites.
The MHCLG's New Towns Taskforce Final Report says: "The new town proposal in Enfield offers a unique opportunity to create a new, family-centred community within the Greater London boundary; leading the way in releasing poor-quality greenbelt land for sustainable, quality development.
"It has the potential for up to 21,000 homes, across c.884 hectares, with an ambition for 50% of those homes to be affordable, helping to address London's acute housing need."
Thompsons of Crews Hill is a soil, turf and paving specialist business and, along with a garden centre, Rod Thompson is the proprietor of the firm.
It's a business that's been run by his family since 1948, when his grandfather started it. If the new town plans go ahead, Thompsons of Crews Hill would be under threat, he says. Thompson employs 70 staff, including members of his immediate family.
He told me that the first he'd heard of the Crews Hill new town plan was when Sir Keir announced them at the Labour Party conference last year, with the businessman adding that there's been "no communication from the government".
Thompson says his business "needs a big lot of work and that requires capital investment, but we can't even think about that with this looming over our heads".
He added: "It's not just about us, it's about the people of Enfield... we are providing such a service to the people of Enfield and to the people of London, in fact.
"Take the average person who's cooped up in an office all week and comes out for a bit of recreation on the weekend - how much does that do for their mental health? And where do they go if we go?"
Carol Fisk, from local campaign group Action for Enfield's Future, also has concerns.
"The new towns are supposed to be place-making - we see it as place-breaking," she says.
"There's already a place here, it's called Crews Hill - it's got hundreds of businesses, mostly independent, multiple-generation businesses; they employ over a thousand people and those jobs are AI-proof, automation-proof. A lot of school leavers get their first jobs there - it's not the sort of place you want to destroy."
Since the local elections last month, Enfield Council is one of the boroughs that has changed political colour, in this instance from Labour red to Conservative blue, and in doing so, has elected a new leader - Conservative councillor Alessandro Georgiou, who will lead a minority administration.
One of the first announcements Georgiou made after taking up the role was to withdraw from the government's new towns process.
Georgiou told BBC London he believes that this issue is one of the main local issues that got him elected as leader, and he said he would "go to war" with the government in "legal, political and various other ways" to fight off development on the green belt in the borough.
The council leader's view is echoed by other local politicians, who've been voicing their opposition since the government published its proposals in September. Some feel strongly about the report's wording describing surrounding land as "poor-quality greenbelt".
Sarah Jons, who is leader of the Enfield Greens, says the recent elections were a time for local voices to be heard on this issue. She says residents feel there's an "element of secrecy" around the plans for Crews Hill, and that her new role as a councillor will allow her to scrutinise that.
Jons added: "I think there are a lot better alternatives we could look at... there is Meridian Water, for example, and there are plenty of empty properties as well, so we could audit some of those and put them back into service, and do detailed analysis of existing brownfield sites... I don't think the infrastructure is here, and (regarding the green belt) once you tarmac over it, it's gone forever.
"It's about protecting the land for future generations as well."
It's widely agreed that London is facing a housing crisis, and many experts say that building more affordable housing is one of the solutions.
In a report published this week, the think tank Centre for Cities called on Mayor of London Sir Sadiq Khan and the government to intervene to ensure the Crews Hill new town goes ahead - largely because it would deliver "much-needed social housing for London".
The think tank's chief executive Andrew Carter says Crews Hill is an "ideal location" for 21,000 new homes, in part because of its railway station which offers a direct connection to central London.
"It's on the edge of a very large and dynamic labour market - central London - and what the government wants to do is to build houses which can connect to economic growth... this is the ideal place to do it."
He added: "The government had anticipated local resistance... for a scheme this size, they would probably introduce a special body - a development corporation - like we did for the Olympics in London - to make it happen and to bring everything together... they can do that whether the council wants them to or not."
A government spokesperson said: "Where projects have stalled or been watered down, the government will back mayors to push them through – unlocking homes, infrastructure and jobs, particularly for younger generations.
"This includes challenging Enfield Council's refusal to support a proposed new town in an area with significant housing need, which is near to an under-used train station.
"The prime minister is clear that decisions on new towns will be taken in the national interest alone, because it will be the next generation that suffers from inaction."
The government is in discussion with the mayor of London to bring local services from Moorgate to Welwyn Garden City and Stevenage under Transport for London control. It believes this could improve reliability and deliver easier connections across the network.
City Hall says it will continue to work closely with the councillors and the local community in Enfield to develop plans at Crews Hill.
Jules Pipe, deputy mayor for planning and regeneration, said: "Crews Hill and other sites in the borough represent a significant opportunity to deliver sustainable high-quality neighbourhoods, improve the quality of and access to nature and local green spaces, and tackle London's acute housing crisis."
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