Wandsworth Council’s leading planning chief has blasted developers of the controversial tower by Battersea Bridge as ‘arrogant’ and acting with ‘no care’ for the views of residents, or the council.

Councillor Tony Belton, chairman of the Planning Applications committee, also hit out at Rockwell Property for making the council spend more than half a million pounds defending its own unanimous decision to reject the 29-storey block of luxury flats on a historic stretch of river bank.

In an exclusive and wide-ranging interview with The Chelsea Citizen, Cllr Belton – who has more than 50 years of experience in local government – was also damning of Rockwell’s offer of affordable housing as the reason for allowing the development. Mr Belton, 84, dismissed it as the wrong type of accommodation and a ‘drop in the ocean’ in relation to the council’s needs. 

‘They have been very arrogant towards local people and incredibly arrogant to the residents living in the block [Thameswalk] that shares the party wall. They have not connected with them at all.    

‘The attitude of the developers is very interesting. They have always assumed that they were getting their plans through, regardless of what local people think. And local opinion has been unanimously against. That’s arrogance,’ he added. 

 
Cllr Belton has been dismayed by the approach taken by Rockwell, the company owned by Monaco-based property tycoon, Donal Mulryan. The development proposals were thrown out by Wandsworth Council in April 2025. Conservative councillors even set aside their long-held differences with Labour to unite against the proposal.  

Cllr Belton added: ‘In all my years at the council, the Tories have opposed every single planning application that Labour has supported. On this occasion, however, they sided with Labour to reject the tower. So – Rockwell has at least succeeded in uniting the council!’

London Mayor, Sir Sadiq Khan also refused to overturn the decision, but Rockwell appealed to the Government, leaving the council no choice but to defend its decisions. An eight day public inquiry will open at Wandsworth town hall tomorrow morning. (17th March)

‘It is outrageous Rockwell do not recognise we could get charged for the costs of this appeal. Rockwell should be made to pay the costs of this crazy exercise.’

Fees for legal representation, including an expensive King’s Counsel, are believed to be in excess of £500,000, which – according to Cllr Belton – represents around one percent of the local authority’s council tax revenue. 

Belton explained that cash-strapped councils face difficult decisions every day and that the money being used for the public inquiry could be better used ‘for transport, Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) kids, support for the elderly, or education’.

Mr Belton also explained how Rockwell’s 50 affordable housing units within its proposal would all be high up in a tower, which is impractical for families with young children.

‘As anywhere in London we have a pretty desperate housing need. There are 3,000 people on the housing waiting list in Wandsworth, so what Rockwell is proposing is a drop in the ocean.

‘Affordable housing at height is not a good option. Affordable housing by its very nature is inclined to house families with children that are not terribly well. Children in high rise buildings has never been a great idea. Mums and dads like to have their eye on their kids, especially when they are out at play, not 15 storeys up.’

Cllr Belton says that he believes the scale of the development is being driven by Rockwell paying too much for the Glassmill site. He also issued a warning about the future of Battersea Riverside if the appeal is successful, citing the stretch of river front, from Battersea Power Station to Cremorne railway bridge as being largely untouched by high rise. 

‘This will be destroyed,’ said Cllr Belton. ‘It changes the outlook from Chelsea, looking south, which should be protected.

“Rockwell clearly paid far too much for the site in the first place. I don’t know how much they spent, but they obviously need a very large development to justify their original expenditure. I don’t see why the community and Wandsworth should pay for their mistake.” 

Furthermore, Cllr Belton also expressed concern around the open-ended closure of Albert Bridge and the near-permanent existing road works in Battersea streets surrounding the Glassmill site. He believes any new construction work would bring the entire area to a standstill. 

‘Whilst Albert Bridge is closed, Battersea Bridge could not take the strain,’ said Cllr Belton.

‘Rockwell have made an enormous mistake. It would be better for everyone, if they gave up and accepted the whole community is against it. We do not want a building like this on our riverfront’.