Posted on 14 February 2022
We were pleased by the Secretary of State for Levelling Up Housing and Communities’ statement to the House of Commons on 10 January 2022, and believe his commitments are a significant step in the right direction in addressing the building safety crisis.
The Government:
- has committed to putting the safety of residents at the heart of policy and legislation on building safety
- intends to source an extra £4bn of funding from developers for the removal of dangerous cladding on buildings between 11m and 18m; and to pursue those responsible for defects; Mr Gove has already met with developers to discuss a way forward
- has committed to accelerating the apportionment of funding to remediate unsafe buildings and launched the Building Safety Fund Leaseholder and Resident Service to publish updates on how BSF applications are progressing
- is demanding a more proportionate approach to assessing building safety risk, so leaseholders aren’t unfairly affected by overcautious assessments
- plans to use the forthcoming Building Safety Bill to protect leaseholders from the costs of remediation and mitigation of fire risks
- is changing the rules around grant funding that will mean leaseholders living in buildings waiting for an EWS1 form will be able to sublet their home. We've already updated our policy on subletting.
We believe people are entitled to feel, and to be, safe in their homes, without fear of financial ruin. We wholeheartedly support the Government’s principle that ‘the polluter should pay’ and that leaseholders shouldn’t foot the bill for a crisis that is not of their doing.
This crisis has gone on for far too long and it isn’t right that thousands of people are caught up in a situation that is not of their doing. We share the frustration and worry of our customers.
We hope that together, Government, the housing sector and the entire construction industry can resolve these issues, so that people can feel safe in their homes and get on with their lives, and look forward to working with Government over the coming months.