Lawyers for the Tulip were locked in talks this afternoon about what to do next after the 305m tall tourist attraction in the City of London was thrown out by the government earlier today.

Insiders told Building Design they were taken aback by the news, with one saying: “A few weeks ago I thought it was 80:20 in favour of going through. I’m gobsmacked. I wonder if COP26 had something to do with it.”

The final decision on the Foster & Partners-designed scheme rested with housing and communities secretary Michael Gove after a planning battle lasting more than two years.

Today’s news split the industry with the Square Mile’s former chief planner Peter Rees telling Building Design: “Thank God. I’m delighted. I would have recommended it for refusal. There’s little enough land [in the City] as it is without wasting it on someone’s ego trip. The City is not an amusement park.”

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