The report highlighted need for new property development in central London to be implemented for Central London to continue to trade successfully into the recession and beyond.

The report said there are significant challenges on the horizon for central London, with Westfield London having just opened and Westfield Stratford City scheduled for 2011.

It said: ‘London needs to evolve but it still takes far too long for the development process to move forward and many feel that they are fighting against both the market and also Local Authorities. The latter have an ability to frustrate that is second to none – the protracted delays at Victoria being an excellent example.’

The report said if central London is to remain the ‘pinnacle of retailing’ in this global city, then the development of new stock needs to be brought forward faster and with more flexibility than has been shown in the past.

It said: ‘Retailers work in a lively and ever-changing environment where reaction times to changing fashions and customer demands are extremely short.

'The reaction time of London’s West End in providing quality retail stock is unfortunately at the other end of the scale, and if there is one overriding threat to London’s place at the top of the retail hierarchy, it’s simply that retailers will no longer be prepared to wait for our existing stock to be slowly developed and improved.’