Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he is taking to help leaseholders (a) obtain mortgages or (b) re-mortgage their properties in situations where they are unable to obtain External Wall System (1) forms.

The EWS1 form was introduced by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) to assist in valuation of high-rise residential buildings for mortgage purposes. Government does not support a blanket approach in EWS1 requests for lower risk properties and is encouraging mortgage lenders to accept other equivalent evidence from building owners for valuation purposes.