The Labour government has set a five-year target for remediating buildings with flammable cladding.
By the end of 2029 the government said all 18m+ (high-rise) buildings with unsafe cladding in a government-funded scheme will have been remediated. At the same time 11m+ buildings will have either been remediated, have a date for completion, or the landlords will be liable for severe penalties.
The government published its Remediation Acceleration Plan yesterday, which pledges to fix buildings faster, identify all unsafe buildings, and support residents from the financial burden of fixing the issues
Angela Rayner, deputy prime minister, said: “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 Grenfell Tower fire took place in June 2017, killing 72 and injuring a further 74.
Since then, 95% of buildings with the same type of cladding used on Grenfell have been remediated.
However, the government said only 30% of identified buildings in England have been remediated, with potentially thousands more buildings yet to be identified.
Alongside the plan, the government will publish a joint action plan with developers to accelerate their work to fix buildings where they are responsible.
At least 29 developers, covering over 95% of the buildings which developers are remediating themselves, have committed to more than doubling the rate at which they have been assessing and starting to fix unsafe buildings, meaning work on all their buildings will start by summer 2027.
Natalie Chambers, director of the Residential Freehold Association, said: “We share the government’s objective of making buildings safe as quickly as possible and would urge the government to work with the sector to improve the building safety regime, which is currently causing significant delays to remediation processes.
“The shortage of specialists available to remediate buildings will not be resolved by imposing a deadline nor will it address the various regulatory inconsistencies, funding gaps and delays caused by the Building Safety Regulator.
“RFA members remain committed to working with the government and stakeholders to remediate buildings as quickly and appropriately as possible.”
However Sarah Taylor, property dispute resolution partner, Excello Law, said: “Whilst the intention behind the Remediation Acceleration Plan is commendable, it raises many questions. The Building Safety Act details a complicated and bureaucratic process for remediation but places duties on those who own higher-risk buildings (i.e. those at least 18 metres or 7 storeys high).
“The Remediation Acceleration Plan sets a 2029 deadline for the remediation of all higher-risk buildings with unsafe cladding. However, it is unclear how this deadline will be enforced, and whether it will give leaseholders certainty that their buildings will be made safe. Some leaseholders do not yet know that they are living in a building with unsafe cladding as not all buildings have been identified.
“We understand that proposals have been drawn up with housing developers as to how work can be accelerated to fix buildings for which they are responsible. We shall wait with interest to see if this is sufficiently comprehensive to ensure that the Remediation Acceleration Plan is carried out effectively and by the proposed deadline. More applications for Remediation Orders may be needed to push developers to remediate their buildings. Regulators, who are to be given robust new powers to enforce remediation, must use these powers to prevent another cladding disaster. For leaseholders who have already been waiting a long time for their buildings to be made safe, a five-year Remediation Acceleration Plan deadline may feel like a lifetime.”
