Empty and redundant office space in the London Borough of Islington will continue to be easily converted into flats, thanks to the intervention of a Housing Minister into local planning rules.

Planning permission for office-to-home conversion has been unnecessary in the borough, as in the rest of the capital and beyond, since May 2013 under a “permitted development right”. The infamously dark and imposing 17-storey Archway Tower of Islington, at the top of Holloway Road, came right under this article of law and was therefore ripe for conversion until the council decided to remove this permission across the borough.

The Housing Minister begged to differ and overruled the decision, allowing all conversions to go ahead, save for “very small, targeted parts of Islington.”

Housing Minister Brandon Lewis said: “The steps I’m taking today ensure that Londoners can benefit from the steps we’ve taken to cut red tape and make it easier to deliver these new homes in Islington.”

Islington Council had been in disagreement with Essential Living, the developers of Archway Tower, before this, when the project didn't consider the council's request to tackle the winds and draft the shape of the building causes in the immediate vicinity.

Here is a Government-sanctioned map of the parts of Islington where offices can freely be developed into flats and houses, by only applying for a proper approval for transport, contamination and flooding issues.