Recommendations & Conclusions
16 items
1
Conclusion
Seventh Report: Cladding Remediation—Fo…
We are concerned that, despite our previous recommendation on this issue, the Government still lacks data on the full scale and extent of remediation needed for buildings both below and above 18m. In order to know how much it will cost to remove unsafe cladding from multi-storey buildings once and …
Government response. We are committed to publishing information in data releases as soon as it is appropriate to do so. We currently publish a monthly data release on progress with remediation of unsafe ACM cladding. We also publish a monthly update on …
Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
2
Recommendation
Seventh Report: Cladding Remediation—Fo…
We reiterate our recommendation from our June 2020 report that in the same way as it has done for buildings with ACM cladding, the Government should publish a monthly data release on the number of buildings with non-ACM cladding and other serious fire safety defects awaiting remediation. This data release …
Government response. We are committed to publishing information in data releases as soon as it is appropriate to do so. We currently publish a monthly data release on progress with remediation of unsafe ACM cladding. We also publish a monthly update on …
Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
3
Conclusion
Seventh Report: Cladding Remediation—Fo…
We welcome the additional £3.5 billion funding towards cladding remediation for buildings 18m and above in height, which is a significant increase on the £1.6 billion already committed. However, we are concerned about perceived and real restrictions to the Building Safety Fund which affect residents’ safety, and the approach to …
Government response. We believe that establishing a “Comprehensive Building Safety Fund” as the Committee recommends would drive unnecessary remediation works to the detriment of leaseholders. The Government is advocating a proportionate approach to building safety. This will deliver a safe level of …
Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
4
Recommendation
Seventh Report: Cladding Remediation—Fo…
The Government should establish a Comprehensive Building Safety Fund for full remediation works of affected buildings. In allocating funds from the Comprehensive Building Safety Fund, the Government should move away from the current height- and product-based approach and should instead take a holistic, risk- and evidence-based approach that prioritises occupants …
Government response. We believe that establishing a “Comprehensive Building Safety Fund” as the Committee recommends would drive unnecessary remediation works to the detriment of leaseholders. The Government is advocating a proportionate approach to building safety. This will deliver a safe level of …
Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
5
Conclusion
Seventh Report: Cladding Remediation—Fo…
A building that is half-safe is a building that is unsafe. Leaseholders are no more responsible for non-cladding fire safety defects than they are for the presence of combustible cladding on their homes. The costs of non-cladding related remediation could be just as high as the costs of cladding remediation. …
Government response. We believe that establishing a “Comprehensive Building Safety Fund” as the Committee recommends would drive unnecessary remediation works to the detriment of leaseholders. The Government is advocating a proportionate approach to building safety. This will deliver a safe level of …
Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
6
Recommendation
Seventh Report: Cladding Remediation—Fo…
The Comprehensive Building Safety Fund should be fully funded by Government and industry, and the Government should establish clear principles regarding how the costs should be split between the two. Total contributions should not be capped, given that, as we have already highlighted, the full scale of remediation needed is …
Government response. We believe that establishing a “Comprehensive Building Safety Fund” as the Committee recommends would drive unnecessary remediation works to the detriment of leaseholders. The Government is advocating a proportionate approach to building safety. This will deliver a safe level of …
Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
7
Conclusion
Seventh Report: Cladding Remediation—Fo…
Social housing providers should have full and equal access to government funds for remediation, whether through the existing Building Safety Fund or our proposed Comprehensive Building Safety Fund. Our proposed Comprehensive Building Safety Fund would cover all necessary remediation, including relating to non-cladding fire safety defects, but if the Government …
Government response. Social housing providers have access to the £400m Social Sector ACM Cladding Remediation Fund for the removal and replacement of unsafe ACM cladding systems. Social housing providers were also eligible for the Building Safety Fund for other combustible cladding types …
Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
8
Conclusion
Seventh Report: Cladding Remediation—Fo…
It is disappointing that the Government’s proposed loan scheme, whereby leaseholders contribute up to £50 a month to pay for cladding remediation works on buildings between 11m and 18m high, does not satisfy the previously agreed principle that leaseholders should not pay. Leaseholders of buildings below 18m are no more …
Government response. We believe that establishing a “Comprehensive Building Safety Fund” as the Committee recommends would drive unnecessary remediation works to the detriment of leaseholders. The Government is advocating a proportionate approach to building safety. This will deliver a safe level of …
Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
9
Recommendation
Seventh Report: Cladding Remediation—Fo…
The Government should abolish the loan scheme. We reiterate our call on the Government to re-establish the principle that leaseholders should not pay anything towards the cost of remediating historical building safety defects. Instead, as we have stated, costs should be fully met by the Comprehensive Building Safety Fund, to …
Government response. We believe that establishing a “Comprehensive Building Safety Fund” as the Committee recommends would drive unnecessary remediation works to the detriment of leaseholders. The Government is advocating a proportionate approach to building safety. This will deliver a safe level of …
Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
10
Recommendation
Seventh Report: Cladding Remediation—Fo…
The Committee welcomes the introduction of a new developer levy and tax to ensure that developers contribute towards the costs of remediation. We recognise and welcome the fact that some developers have already committed millions towards remediation funds. We also recognise the need to encourage the building of new homes, …
Government response. The Government agrees with the Committee’s recommendation that those responsible for building safety defects should be made to contribute to the costs of remediation. Alongside its negotiations with developers the Government has been engaged in discussions with various product manufacturers …
Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
11
Conclusion
Seventh Report: Cladding Remediation—Fo…
We also ask the Government to consider how others, including product manufacturers and suppliers, can contribute to the costs of fire safety remediation, in line with principles set out by the Government about the proportion of costs to be met by industry.
Government response. The Government agrees with the Committee’s recommendation that those responsible for building safety defects should be made to contribute to the costs of remediation. Alongside its negotiations with developers the Government has been engaged in discussions with various product manufacturers …
Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
12
Conclusion
Seventh Report: Cladding Remediation—Fo…
We welcome the introduction of the waking watch relief fund, which shows the Government recognises that intervention is needed to support leaseholders with interim fire safety costs. However, the scheme does not go far enough. It does not cover the costs of installing alarms in all affected buildings, and there …
Government response. The Government recognises that the costs of prolonged interim measures can be a significant burden on leaseholders. That is why, in January 2021, we launched the £35 million Waking Watch Relief Fund to install common fire alarm systems in high-rise …
Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
13
Recommendation
Seventh Report: Cladding Remediation—Fo…
We are concerned by the lack of progress on keeping residents’ building insurance costs reasonable during the period when their buildings are being remediated. The Government has been engaging with the insurance industry for months, and all the while leaseholders are seeing their premiums skyrocket—yet another cost they are facing …
Government response. On 28 January, the Secretary of State called on the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) to review buildings insurance premiums for people living in medium and high-rise blocks of flats. Although the initial request …
Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
14
Recommendation
Seventh Report: Cladding Remediation—Fo…
The new guidance on EWS1 forms alone is not sufficient to mitigate the short-term and long-term impacts that the underlying uncertainty around building safety is having and will have on the wider housing market. We ask the Government to report back to this Committee with its assessment of the impact …
Government response. The Government will continue to fund cladding remediation through the Building Safety Fund for buildings above 18 metres, as well as providing funding for 11-18 metre cladding removal through the building safety levy. We note the Committee’s recommendation that the …
Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
15
Recommendation
Seventh Report: Cladding Remediation—Fo…
We are concerned that the exclusion of social landlords from the Building Safety Fund and waking watch relief fund except in specific circumstances is having negative consequences for the wider social housing sector. While the £12 billion Affordable Homes Programme is welcome, any funds diverted from building new social homes …
Government response. Social housing providers have access to the £400m Social Sector ACM Cladding Remediation Fund for the removal and replacement of unsafe ACM cladding systems. Social housing providers were also eligible for the Building Safety Fund for other combustible cladding types …
Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
16
Recommendation
Seventh Report: Cladding Remediation—Fo…
We do not think the Government is doing everything it can to support the physical and mental health of residents of affected buildings. The Government should work with local authorities to ensure that affected residents have access to the physical and mental health support they need. The Government should make …
Government response. We recognise that the building safety crisis has had a negative effect on many residents; leaseholders, who are blameless, have been shouldering a desperately unfair burden and for some this has had an adverse impact on their mental health. Government …
Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government