Berkeley Homes could, of course, reduce the asking price for each flat down to the average price of comparable flats in SE23. This would require a drop of ?80-?100,000 in each unit meaning a loss of profit of between ?5m-?7m for the company.

Knowing what Berkeley Homes paid for the site, this would mean that the entire project would break even at best.

Of course, Berkeley Homes are not going to drop their prices in this way. It is currently impossible to know where or when the housing market is going to "bottom out". Who knows, even an ?80-?100,000 cut may not be enough - and no company can operate in a marketplace where selling price is so uncertain.

Far better to mothball the project, save building costs and wait for the market to recover or for the Chancellor's Autumn statement (in which they may be able to offload the flats for social housing at the taxpayer's expense).

The dispute over the number of 2 bedroom flats is, in part, a way of allowing Berkeley Homes a little more "wiggle room" to increase the number of units and therefore increase the possible overall profit. But it's far more a smokescreen to avoid saying what we all know - the project is now mothballed until further notice.