Mo Jaffer💙

The Crown Estate is worth £16.7 billion making £1.2 billion in profit last year. They're chasing out the UK's oldest Indian restaurant, Veeraswamy. The Crown Estate wants to refurbish the building and create a larger entrance for offices upstairs, allowing it to charge higher office rents. It says the work requires removing Veeraswamy’s separate entrance and cannot proceed with the restaurant remaining there. Veeraswamy disputes that eviction is necessary. Its owners say they have offered to share the enlarged entrance, accommodate the works and match the rent expected from office tenants. The Crown Estate has rejected those alternatives. The estate has offered around £500,000 compensation, while the owners estimate relocating would cost £5 million. Labour keeps talking about reviving our high streets. Yet here is Veeraswamy, a cultural landmark with a century of history, facing eviction so its landlord can command higher office rents. It reflects a familiar problem across the country: the places that give our high streets their character are sacrificed for greater returns. If Labour is serious about revival, protecting that heritage should be part of it. Any plans to step in and help @RNBlake (if you aren't already)?