Deputy prime minister pledges cladding will be fixed by 2029
Angela Rayner has remarked within five years every building of 11 metres and over with unsafe cladding would either have been fixed or have a completion date for remedial work.
More than seven years after the devastating events at London’s Grenfell Tower, the UK government have finally announced plans to crackdown on fixing unsafe buildings.
Today, Rayner announced in Parliament: ‘More than seven years on from the Grenfell tragedy, thousands of people have been left living in homes across this country with dangerous cladding. The pace of remediation has been far too slow for far too long. We are taking decisive action to right this wrong and make homes safe.
‘Our remediation acceleration plan will ensure those responsible for making buildings safe deliver the change residents need and deserve.’
The plans state that buildings of 18 metres and over should have their cladding examined and if found to be faulty, should be reformed. What’s more, severe penalties will be issued to freeholders who fail to act.
News of the announcement has come after Labour criticised the Conservatives slow efforts to previously rectify unsafe buildings. The government said it has been engaging with mayors, local enforcement agencies and developers since July to address the issue.
Against this backdrop, authorities hope to have reviewed more than 95% of buildings 11 metres and over by the end of next year – and fixing them faster. The other main objective of the joint action plan is to protect residents from the financial burden that comes with having to engage in remediation.
To ensure the target is met, developers are set to double the rate at which they fix the buildings they are responsible for and will be backed by investment in enforcement so that councils, fire and rescue authorities and the building safety regulator have the capacity to tackle hundreds of cases a year.
As it stands Labour said only 30% of buildings found to be at risk have been fixed, with potentially thousands more to be discovered.
Cllr Heather Kidd, chair of the Local Governments Association’s safer and stronger communities board, said: ‘Councils are committed to keeping tenants and residents safe, and are keen to work with Government to drive the pace of remediation.
‘However, for local government to carry out enforcement and addressing cladding issues as effectively and quickly as possible, multi-year funding arrangements are needed.
‘Councils are keen to remediate the buildings they own that have dangerous cladding, but they need access to the necessary funding to do so on the same basis they had to remediate ACM cladding.’
In related news:
