The London Plan, published by the Mayor of London in 2004, estimated that the population would reach 8.1 million by 2016, and continue to rise thereafter. This was reflected in a move towards denser, more urban styles of building, including a greatly increased number of tall buildings and proposals for major enhancements to the public transport network. However, funding for projects such as Crossrail remained a struggle.

On 6 July 2005 London won London 2012 Olympic bid, the bid to host the 2012 Olympics. However, celebrations were cut short the following day when, on 7 July 2005, London was rocked by a series of terrorist attacks. More than 50 were killed and 750 injured in three bombings on London Underground and another aboard a Double decker bus near Russell Square in King's Cross.