Developer Chalegrove Properties won consent after the council deferred its decision last month to take further advice because of the height of the project.

The proposed 239m tower would rank as the tallest residential building in Docklands, falling a few metres short of the 245m One Canada Square.

The approval will also be welcomed by house builder Berkeley Group which is also in talks with the council about an 80-storey residential complex in the area, which at 250m would rank as the second tallest building in the UK.

Chalegrove’s tower project will be mainly residential with 864 flats and 84 serviced apartments and is planned for the City Pride pub in Westferry Road, which will be demolished to make way for the new tower.

Chalegrove Properties also gained consent for a separate residential scheme at Island Point Site on Westferry Road, where it aims to build 170 flats in a series of lower rise buildings from three to six storeys with rooftop pavilions.

Both sites were owned by Irish developer Glenkerrin, which received permission for a 62-storey tower in 2009.

But the group fell into administration in 2011 allowing Chalegrove to buy the sites from administrator Grant Thornton