Bristol City Council has agreed a 40-year rent guarantee for office space in Legal & General’s Temple Island development. Conservatives want a review after Greens increased the council’s financial commitment and reduced affordable housing on the site.
The council has committed to a 40-year lease for office space at Temple Island that it will pay for even if the space remains empty.
Green-led committee action increased the council’s payment amount and approved a change expected to halve affordable housing on the development.
Conservative councillors will table a motion on Sept 8 calling for a review of council-private agreements to strengthen safeguards and transparency.
Bristol City Council agreed in 2022 to lease one of two office blocks at the Temple Island site on a 40-year lease to help get Legal & General's development started. The arrangement means the council will guarantee rent to the developer for four decades regardless of whether the council can fully sublet the offices.
If the council cannot find tenants and some offices stay empty, taxpayers still pay the rent to Legal & General. The council plans to sublet at higher rents so a surplus could arise if tenants are found, but that upside depends on the market. The amount the council has guaranteed has not been disclosed.
In July, Green councillors on the strategy and resources policy committee voted to increase the council's financial commitment. They also approved a change to the agreement with Legal & General expected to halve the amount of affordable housing delivered on the site. Labour and Conservative councillors voted against the committee decision.
Conservative councillors will bring a motion to full council on Tuesday, September 8, seeking cross-party support for changes to how the council handles deals with private developers. The proposed review would not reopen the Temple Island decision but would aim to identify lessons and strengthen future agreements.
Cllr John Goulandris (Conservative) said: "Where public money and public assets are involved, taxpayers must be adequately protected, and affordable housing commitments should not be easily diluted." He argued for stronger safeguards, clearer accountability and a better framework for managing risk.
The debate centers on who should bear development risk and how to protect public interest. Conservatives want a formal review to explore better ways to preserve affordable housing commitments, strengthen financial safeguards for taxpayers, improve transparency and ensure risk-sharing in regeneration projects.
The full council debate on September 8 will reveal whether the proposed review gains cross-party support. The council has not disclosed the financial value of its rent guarantee, and that figure will be central to public scrutiny and any future policy changes.
Bristol faces a trade-off: offering long-term financial support to secure a major development and avoid another long-empty site, or tightening rules to reduce taxpayer exposure and protect affordable housing commitments. The forthcoming motion aims to adjust how the council balances those priorities going forward.
Donations flood in to judicial review fundraiser in East Bristol
Top Bristol city councillor boycotts meeting over advise to approve
Bristol's conundrum when this glorious and free event becomes 'too popular'
It is the sixth time in two summers that the park has been taken over
Thousands of people are expected
Routes changed with new bus stops as the council begin work to pedestrianise the Horsefair
Loading more related stories...
Open the app view to save this story, compare related coverage, and continue from the same source.