The landmark redevelopment of 72 Upper Ground is being planned by Mitsubishi Estate and London development manager CO—RE, which said it regretted the move would delay the scheme.

The decision by communities secretary Greg Clark to hold a public inquiry comes a week after London Mayor Sadiq Khan approved the massive project.

It is the second major London scheme halted since June when Clark’s predecessor, Michael Gove, called-in the M&S’s plans to demolish and rebuild its flagship store in Oxford Street over concerns about heritage and embodied carbon.

Designed by Make Architects, the redevelopment of the former ITV studio, known as Project Vista, consisted of a 26-storey staggered office building, connected to two buildings of 13 and 6 storeys.

Alongside 900,000 sq ft of offices, the complex would offer cafes and restaurants, cultural venues and green spaces.

A spokesperson for Mitsubishi Estate London said “We are obviously very disappointed that the start of construction will be delayed with the creation of thousands of jobs postponed and hope this process moves forward quickly.

“The current site is a dormant closed-off tower in a part of the South Bank that desperately needs investment.

“We look forward to demonstrating to the planning inspector how our proposals will both respect the local heritage of the South Bank.”

ITV sold 72 Upper Ground to Mitsubishi Estate in November 2019 with an existing planning permission to redevelop the site.