 Amid the growing neo @-@ liberal , Thatcherite economic changes brought about under the Premiership of Margaret Thatcher , he moved into the private sector to work for the London Docklands Development Corporation from 1981 to 1985 , when he retired . As part of this he took a role in Europe 's largest urban regeneration project , proposing a mix of redevelopment and conservation of existing buildings , using this mixed method to create a design guide for the regeneration of the Isle of Dogs . In this position he also campaigned for the Docklands Light Railway and oversaw the exterior refurbishment of St George in the East . 
