MPs call for dangerous cladding to be removed from 2,000 buildings

A cross-party group of MPs has challenged the government to ensure that no building has the same dangerous cladding used on Grenfell Tower by December 2021.

In a new report out today, the housing, communities and local government select committee warn that there are still 2,000 high risk residential buildings with some form of dangerous cladding, almost three years after the Grenfell Tower fire.

The report calls on the government to make an absolute commitment to ensure that all buildings of any height with ACM cladding should be fully remediated of all fire safety defects by December 2021.

And it adds that buildings with other forms of dangerous cladding should have all fire safety defects removed by June 2022.

The report also calls on the government to take a hard line with freeholders who fail to deal with dangerous cladding on properties they oversee.

Any residential building where work has not begun by December 2020 should be taken over using Compulsory Purchase Order powers.

It also says ministers should consider establishing a new national body whose sole purpose is to purchase the freehold and manage the remediation of buildings with fire safety defects.

‘We have challenged the government to finally commit to removing all forms of dangerous cladding once and for all,’ said committee chair, Clive Betts.

‘Three years on from the Grenfell Tower disaster there are still thousands of home owners living in buildings with some form of dangerous cladding. The financial and emotional toll has been significant, with temporary safety measures costing huge sums and the ongoing stress of living in a property that may not be safe. This is not good enough.

‘It is clear that the £1 billion Building Safety Fund will not be enough Too many risk being excluded by the criteria for accessing this support and the amount of money pledged is only enough to cover a fraction of the work needed. The Fund should be increased so that it is enough to cover the amount of work that is actually needed, both to remove cladding a resolve wider fire safety concerns. Further support must also be provided for the costs of stop-gap safety measures, such as ‘waking watches’, to reduce the burden on homeowners.

‘This should not just be a question of the government, and therefore the taxpayer, stepping in with a blank cheque. Those who have caused, and in some cases refuse to rectify, safety issues must be made to pay. We call on the government to consider taking legal action to recover the cost of works on individual buildings. Compulsory Purchase Order powers should be used to take direct ownership of buildings where owners have failed to begin remedial work by December 2020.

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