Tulip set to bloom on London skyline

Controversial new tower given green light by planners

The skyline of the City of London could be in line for a spectacular and controversial new addition after planners gave approval to the construction of a 305-meter observation tower that will be the second-tallest building in Western Europe.

Final approval for the building, known as the Tulip because of its distinctive shape, now rests with London Mayor Sadiq Khan.

Previously, the Greater London Authority had said the Tulip, which will be constructed at 20 Bury Street in the heart of London's financial district, failed to conform to the London Plan, the guidelines for land use and development in the city.

Organizations including English Heritage and Historic Royal Palaces had also expressed their concern, saying the new building would impact on views of the Tower of London, which lies a short distance away on the banks of the River Thames.

Duncan Wilson, the chief executive of Historic England, dismissed the design as "a lift shaft with a bulge on top" and said it "will cause permanent and irreversible damage to the setting of the Tower of London, and in turn, the image and identity of the capital," adding "it has already been damaged by the Walkie Talkie and it would be a great shame if that mistake was repeated."

The Walkie Talkie is the commonly-used name for the 160-meter building officially known as 20 Fenchurch Street, currently owned by Hong Kong group Lee Kum Kee, which in 2015 won Building Design magazine's Carbuncle Cup, for the worst new building in the country.

An employee of the nearby Royal Town Planning Institute told the Guardian newspaper it was "a daily reminder never to let such a planning disaster ever happen again".

But planners voted 18 to seven that the benefits of the Tulip, which will include a restaurant, sky bar and education facilities, were sufficiently strong to earn approval, and any negatives were "less than substantial".

The City of London Corporation said the Tulip, which will be built by architecture company Foster + Partners, was "truly unique" and would help increase the number of weekend visitors to a business-focused part of London that is often largely deserted when people are not at work.

If constructed, the Tulip will stand alongside the distinctive Gherkin tower, and mean that London is home to the two tallest buildings in Western Europe, with the 309.6-meter Shard, which sits on the south bank of the River Thames, being the tallest.

The Tulip will feature observation gondolas, making an eight-minute loop around the building, allowing visitors a stunning and previously unseen view of the London cityscape. Developers hope the project will be finished by 2025.