Mr Livingstone urged all parties to back the Bill

The new powers, which are outlined in the Greater London Authority Bill, will also give the mayor a greater say on housing and climate change policies.

The Tories say it will lead to conflict with the London boroughs and allow the mayor to override local people's views.

But Housing and Planning Minister Yvette Cooper said the extra powers would allow him "to do his job".

She said with London facing serious housing pressures the mayor must have the power to draw up a housing strategy and link it with planning and transport strategies if necessary.

There is great controversy over this Bill. The mayor for one is unhappy - he is spending �80,000 of taxpayers' money to tell us so Jacqui Lait, Conservative

She assured MPs that the majority of planning applications would still be determined by the London boroughs, with the mayor only able to step in on issues affecting the London plan.

But Tory MP for Putney, Justine Greening, warned the extension of planning powers would mean that local councillors and local people would be "increasingly overridden" - taking power out of local people's hands.

Former local government minister Nick Raynsford, who is Labour MP for Greenwich and Woolwich, strongly supported the Bill.

But he added that without a "clear and precise" definition of the mayor's powers, there was "a real risk of mission-creep, a real risk of the mayor extending powers beyond those envisaged, and possibly wrangles and disputes between individual boroughs and the mayor...".

But Ms Cooper said Mr Livingstone would intervene and make final decisions only in a small number of defined cases.

Tory MP Jacqui Lait said proposed new powers for the mayor on planning and housing took power away from local communities and their elected representatives.

"There is great controversy over this Bill. The Mayor for one is unhappy - he is spending �80,000 of taxpayers' money to tell us so.

Strong objections

"The Assembly is unhappy, the boroughs are unhappy, the residents associations and the amenities associations are unhappy. Most London council taxpayers are unhappy," she said.

Liberal Democrat local government spokesman Tom Brake said his party had strong objections to some parts of the Bill but other parts were welcomed.

In a statement, Mr Livingstone urged all parties to back the Bill.

"Those who oppose this tidying up of the planning process will block more affordable homes for Londoners," he warned.

"Under the planning proposals, borough councils will still decide over 99% of all planning applications, with the Mayor having a new right to approve a very small number of major applications of London-wide importance.