London council planners have told developers that a new block of flats must include a gay bar - and they will send inspectors to check it's gay enough.

Tower Hamlets bosses will only let the site of closed gay bar the Joiners Arms be built on if the developers promise to include a pub that will 'remain a lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender-focused venue for a minimum of 12 years'.

London's culture at risk officer Ed Bayes will make sure the person running the bar is 'sufficiently LGBT'.

Tower Hamlets bosses will only let the site of closed gay bay the Joiners Arms (pictured) be built on if the developers promise to include a gay pub

Council chiefs issued the diktat because Tower Hamlets has lost seven of its 10 LGBT venues since 2006, as meet-up apps such as Grindr and Tinder replace nights out.

Some 58 per cent of London's gay bars have closed in the last ten years.

Mayor of Tower Hamlets John Biggs said: 'Tower Hamlets council is committed to celebrating our great diversity, which includes serving the needs of our LGBTQ+ community. I am delighted that as a council we are leading the way in using innovative ways to protect spaces such as the Joiners Arms site.'

Developer Regal Homes, which wants to build offices and nine luxury flats on the site which it bought in 2014, is on board with the idea.

A spokesman said: 'The development on Hackney Road will re-provide a public house at ground-floor level with the same floor space as the previous Joiners Arms pub.

'We are committed to keeping this space within our development in Tower Hamlets as a LGBT+ venue and have offered a right of first refusal on the lease to LGBT+ interested parties, including the Friends of the Joiners Arms and the New Joiners Arms.

'If the lease is taken up by an interested party then the venue will be secured for at least 12 years for LGBT+ use. We have also agreed a rent-free period for the first year.

'We have met on numerous occasions with the Friends of the Joiners Arms, the New Joiners Arms and with the mayor's night tsar, Amy Lamé, to discuss the future of an LGBT+ venue at our development and fully endorse the LGBT+ venues charter.'