Marks & Spencer (M&S) has finally received permission from the government to redevelop its flagship store on Oxford Street.

On Thursday deputy prime minister Angela Rayner, who is also secretary of state for housing, communities and local government, granted approval for the demolition and redevelopment of the art deco department store more than three years after the retailer submitted a planning application.

The move comes after former housing secretary Michael Gove halted the company’s plans in July 2023.

But earlier this year, the High Court heard that Gove had “misapplied and misunderstood” planning policy when he stopped the redevelopment.

M&S chief executive Stuart Machin welcomed the news after what he described as “three unnecessary years of delays, obfuscation and political posturing at its worst” under the previous government.

“We can now get on with the job of helping to rejuvenate the UK’s premier shopping street through a flagship M&S store and office space, which will support 2,000 jobs and act as a global standard-bearer for sustainability,” said Machin.

The retailer's plans include the demolition of the building, which was built in the late 1920s, with M&S saying it is not possible to retrofit the site into a new, modern flagship store.

The decision comes after the department store chain tested sixteen different plans to retrofit the flagship store, with all proving unsuccessful.

The company said that with West End footfall down 30 per cent on pre-pandemic, it is now the time to “regenerate” the area to regain its position as a global shopping destination, adding that its investment in the Marble Arch store is currently the “only retail-led regeneration” on the famous street.

But M&S went on to say that investment from other retailers on Oxford Street, including Ikea, HMV, and Uniqlo, as well as plans to pedestrianise the street by the mayor of London are further signs of recovery.

The retailer said that the new store is set to be amongst the top one per cent of new buildings in London for sustainable performance. Plans include reducing energy usage to less than a quarter of the existing store and halving water consumption.

The company will also recover, recycle, or reuse 95 per cent of the materials from the current store.

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