Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many blocks of flats which have been found to have dangerous cladding after the Grenfell Tower disaster are owned by freeholders who have not funded removal of that cladding; and if he will he make a statement.
As of 14 June 2018, from the results of Building Research Establishment large-scale system tests and the information provided to us by local authorities we know of 297 private sector residential buildings with cladding systems that are unlikely to meet current Building Regulations guidance. Local authorities have told us about plans for remediating 72 buildings. Of these, 21 buildings have started remediation, of which 4 have completed.
We have made it clear that we expect building owners and industry to explore all options to protect leaseholders from incurring the costs associated with replacing unsafe cladding. Some in the sector, such as Barratt Developments, Legal & General and Taylor Wimpey, are doing the right thing and taking responsibility. We want others to follow their lead and we will continue to encourage them to do so. They must do the right thing, and if they do not, we are not ruling anything out at this stage.