Building Safety (Remediation of Unsafe Cladding etc) Bill

Sam Carling Excerpts

2nd reading
Tuesday 27th October 2026 Commons Chamber

[Florence Eshalomi]

I thank the hon. Gentleman for that intervention. A number of Members have raised the matter of remediation standards. I know that the hon. Member for Surrey Heath (Dr Pinkerton), who is sitting next to him, also raised it in a recent Westminster Hall debate that I responded to.

Many right hon. and hon. Members will be aware that the Bill will make independent auditing of fire risk appraisals of external walls mandatory. We are confident that PAS 9980 has a robust and appropriate methodology for assessing the risk of fire spreading throughout the building. The Bill will also look at the independent auditing and the statutory requirement, ensuring that additional checks on those assessments have been carried out properly. To reassure Members, Homes England will also audit all assessments that recommend mitigation and remediation and will have the power to audit other assessments.

By delivering the remediation backstop, we will ensure that no building and no resident is left behind, even if the person responsible for the building is determined to ignore the risks it presents to residents. By creating stronger avenues for redress against construction product manufacturers, we will ensure that those responsible for the cladding safety crisis pay towards the cost of fixing it.

I thank the Secretary of State and the Building Safety Minister, Baroness Blake, for bringing the Bill forward. I also thank all the Ministers who came before me for the work they did to make this Bill a reality, including the Lord Chancellor, my right hon. Friend the Member for Streatham and Croydon North (Steve Reed) and my hon. Friends the Members for Chester North and Neston (Samantha Dixon) and for Bethnal Green and Stepney (Rushanara Ali).

[Sam Carling (North West Cambridgeshire) (Lab)]

On the subject of fire safety, residents of Fletton Quays in my constituency were shocked recently to see nearly all internal fire doors fail an inspection; it turns out that they had not been inspected for many years and had been allowed to fall into disrepair, and residents are now on the hook to replace them at high cost, as well as being subjected to dangerous conditions. Does the Minister agree that that is really not on, and would she ask officials to examine whether that might be happening in other blocks of flats around the country, meaning that it might merit Government intervention?

[Florence Eshalomi]

I thank my hon. Friend for that point. This Bill deliberately focuses on unsafe external cladding, because the Grenfell tower inquiry phase 1 report found that cladding on external walls. We will be looking at the area he raises as the Bill progresses, so I give him that assurance.

I now turn to a number of comments made by right hon. and hon. Members today, and apologise that I may not be able to cover all Members’ comments. I start with the shadow Minister and the comments she made on the limited workforce capacity of fire safety technicians. We will continue to review that area. There is additional funding to ensure that those fire assessors are in place.

My hon. Friend the Member for Kensington and Bayswater (Joe Powell) outlined why this is such an important issue. I thank him for tireless campaigning and continued work with the survivors of Grenfell. He highlighted some of the dangers that still exist and mentioned the increasing costs that many of his constituents are facing—examples of some residents who are having to pay eye-watering bills to fix the issues. One of the matters I worked with him on in my former role as Chair of the Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee was the national oversight mechanism. It is not right that we are having to go through those recommendations one by one. I hope I can assure him that the Government accepted all the inquiry’s recommendations and we are making progress.

The hon. Member for Taunton and Wellington (Gideon Amos) outlined the issue with PAS 9980. I hope that he will be assured that we will continue to look at that.

My hon. Friend the Member for Ipswich (Jack Abbott) detailed the real-life nature of this issue and the fact that many leaseholders continue to be left in limbo, and their mental state is being affected. Leaseholders are in limbo, waiting for remediation, sometimes having to spend a decade out of their homes. Residents continue to face this injustice, and I thank him for continuing to work with leaseholders.

My hon. Friend the Member for Southampton Itchen (Darren Paffey) outlined the work that he has been leading around Ocean Village and Oceana Boulevard. That building was built only 20 years ago—yet, 10 years in, fire safety defects were outlined. That shows why we have to continue to work to ensure that all buildings are safe, including some that were deemed to be new builds.

The hon. Member for Bristol Central (Carla Denyer) detailed the tragic case of her 97-year-old constituent, who is having to rely on her children to buy her property to give her some certainty. They are now lumbered with a property that they cannot sell—simply for doing the right thing for their parent. No child should have to go through that process and face those costs. That is why we are making sure that the developers are paying for the work with the developer remediation fund.

My hon. Friend the Member for Northampton South (Mike Reader) outlined points that a number of Members highlighted. We will continue to look at the issues around insurance and non-qualifying leaseholders. I know he has expertise and knowledge on construction product manufacture, and I will continue to engage with him as the Bill progresses.

My hon. Friend the Member for Salford (Rebecca Long Bailey) outlined the work she has been doing with her constituents for many years and praised the decisive action taken by Salford council to act fast and think later, and then seek those costs back. It shows that our local authorities, where possible, are stepping forward to fill the gaps where developers have failed, but councils should not have to be leading on this. The developers of the buildings should be the ones paying, and we hope that the Bill will identify those owners.

My right hon. Friend the Member for Leeds South (Hilary Benn) outlined the fantastic work that he has been doing with the Leeds cladding campaigners. He also highlighted the issues around the delays in building safety regulations. Under the leadership of Lord Roe and Charlie Pugsley, I hope that Members will see that we are making progress in building regulation standards.

My hon. Friend the Member for Poplar and Limehouse (Apsana Begum) highlighted the tragic case of the fire at Neutron Tower, which sadly resulted in a resident losing his life. My hon. Friend knows that the investigation is still ongoing, so it would be inappropriate for me to comment, but we are continuing to work with relevant parties to ensure that the safeguarding and wellbeing of displaced residents is addressed as soon as possible. The London Fire Brigade has stated that the fire is believed to be accidental, but as this investigation is ongoing, we will continue to engage with my hon. Friend and her residents.

My hon. Friend the Member for Harlow (Chris Vince) highlighted the PTSD faced by his constituent. That shows the real-life consequences that many of our firefighters—the first responders to that tragic fire and the many tragic fires we continue to see—have to live with. I hope that Ministers in the DWP will take into account how my hon. Friend’s constituent has to reapply every two years to that Department.

This is a real issue on which all hon. Members need to continue to engage and discuss. I hope that hon. Members will continue to engage constructively with us as the Bill progresses through the Public Bill Committee.

The passion with which hon. Members have spoken is testament to the desire we all share to bring the building safety crisis to an end and protect the residents and leaseholders who desperately need and want to see action. The Government are delivering on that. We are providing more remediation funding than ever before, remediating more buildings than ever before, prioritising higher-risk buildings and putting the safety of residents at the heart of our work.

My hon. Friend the Member for Stevenage (Kevin Bonavia) spoke about the work of his constituent, whom the Secretary of State and I had the pleasure of meeting two weeks ago, along with cladding scandal group members. No one could have been unmoved when listening to their testimony, given the real-life issues and trauma that the ongoing delay is causing to so many. People’s lives are on hold—they cannot plan for their future, and they are in financial ruins. Tragically, some people have died waiting for the issue to be resolved.

Alongside the package of measures we have delivered to accelerate remediation and support leaseholders, the Bill will ensure that no building and no resident is left behind. I hope that hon. Members see that the Bill will bring certainty, clarity and accountability to drive forward remediation and make every building safe. That is what we owe to residents, and that what we owe to the country.

I am grateful to hon. Members from all parties who have given their support to work with us on the Bill. In that spirit, I commend it to the House.

Question put and agreed to.

Bill accordingly read a Second time.

Building Safety (Remediation of Unsafe Cladding etc) Bill (Programme)

Motion made, and Question put forthwith (Standing Order No. 83A(7)),

That the following provisions shall apply to the Building Safety (Remediation of Unsafe Cladding etc) Bill:

Committal

(1) The Bill shall be committed to a Public Bill Committee.

Proceedings in Public Bill Committee

(2) Proceedings in the Public Bill Committee shall (so far as not previously concluded) be brought to a conclusion on Tuesday 8 December 2026.

(3) The Public Bill Committee shall have leave to sit twice on the first day on which it meets.

Consideration and Third Reading

(4) Proceedings on Consideration shall (so far as not previously concluded) be brought to a conclusion one hour before the moment of interruption on the day on which those proceedings are commenced.

(5) Proceedings on Third Reading shall (so far as not previously concluded) be brought to a conclusion at the moment of interruption on that day.

(6) Standing Order No. 83B (Programming committees) shall not apply to proceedings on Consideration and Third Reading.

Other proceedings

(7) Any other proceedings on the Bill may be programmed.—(Rachel Hopkins.)

Question agreed to.

Building Safety (Remediation of Unsafe Cladding etc) Bill (Money)

King’s recommendation signified.

Motion made, and Question put forthwith (Standing Order No. 52(1)(a)),

That, for the purposes of any Act resulting from the Building Safety (Remediation of Unsafe Cladding etc) Bill, it is expedient to authorise the payment out of money provided by Parliament of:

(a) any expenditure incurred under or by virtue of the Act by the Secretary of State, and

(b) any increase attributable to the Act in the sums payable under any other Act out of money so provided.—(Rachel Hopkins.)

Question agreed to.

Building Safety (Remediation of Unsafe Cladding etc) Bill (Ways and Means)

Motion made, and Question put forthwith (Standing Order No. 52(1)(a)),

That, for the purposes of any Act resulting from the Building Safety (Remediation of Unsafe Cladding etc) Bill, it is expedient to authorise the charging of fees and charges under or by virtue of the Act.—(Rachel Hopkins.)

Question agreed to.