Asked by: Kevin McKenna (Labour - Sittingbourne and Sheppey)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to improve fire safety in residential buildings; and what support she has made available for (a) leaseholders and (b) building owners that do not qualify for the Cladding Safety Scheme.
Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The new building safety regime puts in place more stringent oversight for the safety of high-rise residential buildings, with clearer accountability backed by stronger enforcement and sanctions to deter and rectify non-compliance.
The new regulatory requirements also require all people responsible for higher-risk buildings to capture and report certain fire and structural safety issues (mandatory safety occurrences) to the Building Safety Regulator.
There is a pathway to fixing unsafe cladding in all 11 metres+ residential buildings in England through developer, social housing provider and government funded remediation programmes.
Any contribution required from qualifying leaseholders for non-cladding defects and interim measures is firmly capped and spread over 10 years, with costs already paid out since 28 June 2017 counting towards the cap. If remediation costs exceed the cap, building owners must make up the difference. This means that, for the majority of qualifying leaseholders, the maximum amount that can be charged for non-cladding remediation and interim measures is £15,000 in Greater London (or £10,000 elsewhere in England).
All leaseholders, including those who hold a non-qualifying lease, benefit from qualifying lease status for their principal residence on 14 February 2022 if it is in a relevant building above 11 metres or five storeys. Non-qualifying leaseholders cannot be required to pay more than they would have done in the absence of the leaseholder protections, i.e., they cannot be required to pay for others’ share of remediation costs.
The Building Safety Act enables provides a route for building owners to pursue remediation contribution orders against developers and contractors – and their associated companies – for funds they have spent or will spend remediating their buildings for relevant defects.