UK Inquiry Tracker

Progress in remediating dangerous cladding

Public Accounts Committee Closed Inquiry

Opened: 15 Jun 2020 Closed: 2 Dec 2020 Parliament page

After the Grenfell tower block fire tragedy that killed 71 people the Government established the Building Safety Programme, to “ensure that residents of high-rise residential buildings are safe, and feel safe from the risk of fire”. The Grenfell Inquiry said it was essential that similar cladding was removed from the … Read more After the Grenfell tower block fire tragedy that killed 71 people the Government established the Building Safety Programme, to “ensure that residents of high-rise residential buildings are safe, and feel safe from the risk of fire”. The Grenfell Inquiry said it was essential that similar cladding was removed from the exterior of high-rise buildings “as quickly as possible”. In May 2018 MHCLG made £400 million available for the remediation of dangerous cladding from high-rise flats in the social housing sector, and in May 2019 announced a further £200 million for the remediation of equivalent buildings in the private housing sector. Nearly three years later, the NAO report into remediating dangerous cladding on high-rise buildings finds that only about one third of the buildings which fit the specification for the work - 18 metres and above with unsafe “aluminium composite material” (ACM) cladding systems - had been fully remediated, leaving 307 of the total 456 where remediation was not yet finished, and work has not yet begun on 167 of those. The original deadline for completing all these buildings was this month, June 2020. Not all buildings with dangerous ACM cladding fall within scope of the government’s existing funding schemes for the social and private housing sectors, but the Department’s own Independent Expert Advisory Panel has advised that the most dangerous forms of ACM cladding are unsafe on buildings of any height, and that risks are increased in buildings with elderly and vulnerable residents. The Department now estimates that all buildings within the scope of its funding will now be remediated by mid-2022, but this new deadline does not take account of the impacts of COVID-19: there are early signs that the epidemic has slowed the pace of remediation, with up to 60% of projects that were under way paused by April 2020. The pace of remediation has been slowest in the private residential sector, with only 13.5% of private sector residential buildings fixed: by the end of April 2020, the Department had paid out £1.42 million (0.7%) from the £200 million private sector fund compared to £133 million (33.3%) from the £400 million social sector fund. It has been difficult to identify those legally responsible for private buildings, and they have “required more support than was expected”. The owners of 84 private sector residential buildings have committed to fund remediation, with a further 23 self-funded through warranty claims. The Government expects to pay for 94 projects out of 208 in the private sector, where the developer or building owner has not agreed to fund remediation themselves. Seven buildings have not agreed a funding route. In the social sector, the Department has committed to fund 139 out of 154 residential buildings. In March 2020 the Department announced a further £1 billion funding for the remediation of other unsafe cladding, not ACM, on high-rise buildings in the social and private residential sectors. The NAO reports that administration of this new scheme may present significant challenges, given the issues with the existing fund of around half the size. On Monday 6 July the Committee will question officials from the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government on the Government’s progress on remediating dangerous cladding. If you have evidence on the questions and issues raised in this report, please submit it here by 5.30pm on Thursday 2 July. Show less

13 Recommendations

12 Conclusions

1 Report

1 Oral session

4 Letters

1 Event

Activity timeline 7 events

14 Jun
2021

Correspondence

Correspondence from Jeremy Pocklington CB, Permanent Secretary Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government, re In response to the P…

1 Mar
2021

Correspondence

Correspondence from Jeremy Pocklington, Permanent Secretary, Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government, re Progress in remedia…

26 Jan
2021

Correspondence

Correspondence from Jeremy Pocklington, Permanent Secretary, Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government, re Remediation of dang…

13 Jan
2021

Correspondence

Correspondence from Jeremy Pocklington, Permanent Secretary, Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government, re Building Safety Fun…

18 Nov
2020

Report published

Treasury minutes: Government response to the Committee of Public Accounts on the Sixteenth report from Session 2019-21

16 Sep
2020

Report published

Sixteenth Report - Progress in remediating dangerous cladding

6 Jul
2020

Oral evidence

Progress in remediating dangerous cladding

Oral evidence sessions 1 session

6 Jul 2020

View on parliament.uk

Progress in remediating dangerous cladding

Jeremy Pocklington · Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government Neil 0'Connor · Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government

Reports 1 report · click to expand

Title	HC No.	Published	Items	Response
Sixteenth Report - Progress in remediating dangerous cladding	HC 406	16 Sep 2020	25	Responded

Recommendations & Conclusions

4 results

11 Recommendation Acknowledged

Sixteenth Report - Progress in rem…

One category of buildings below 18 metres that might present increased risks are care homes.

One category of buildings below 18 metres that might present increased risks are care homes. In January 2020 the Department published advice from its independent expert advisory panel that buildings of any height with residents who need significant assistance to … Read more

Government Response

The government acknowledges the fire safety risks in care homes, stating that work by the CQC could be explored regarding these risks.

HM Treasury

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21 Conclusion Acknowledged

Sixteenth Report - Progress in rem…

We made it clear to the Department that professional indemnity insurance has been regularly brought...

We made it clear to the Department that professional indemnity insurance has been regularly brought to our attention by the industry and needs sorting as a priority.67 The Department told us that it is working with the Fire Industry Association … Read more

Government Response

The department acknowledges the challenges with professional fire expertise and indemnity insurance, stating they have joint workstreams to address these issues. They are also working with industry to understand challenges in accessing affordable buildings insurance.

HM Treasury

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22 Conclusion Acknowledged

Sixteenth Report - Progress in rem…

While leaseholders have been unable to move or remortgage, some have seen their insurances premiums...

While leaseholders have been unable to move or remortgage, some have seen their insurances premiums rise significantly. For those in buildings with serious fire safety defects, there are examples of premiums rising by over 400%.69 This is on top of … Read more

Government Response

The department acknowledges the challenges with affordable buildings insurance and states that officials are working with industry to better understand the issue.

HM Treasury

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23 Recommendation Acknowledged

Sixteenth Report - Progress in rem…

The National Audit Office found that there has been a shortage of skills or personnel...

The National Audit Office found that there has been a shortage of skills or personnel needed to complete remediation work.72 However, shortages are not restricted to the removal and replacement of cladding. The Local Government Association wrote to us outlining … Read more

Government Response

The government acknowledges the challenges with professional fire expertise and indemnity insurance, stating it has joint workstreams with industry actively seeking to address these issues.

HM Treasury

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Government Response AI assessment · 25 of 13 classified

Accepted 15

Accepted in Part 4

Acknowledged 4

Not Addressed 2

Total 13 recs + 12 conclusions

Correspondence 4 letters

14 Jun 2021 Correspondence from Jeremy Pocklington CB, Permanent Secretary Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government, re In response to the Public Accounts Committee’s 16th Report of Session 2019-2021 ‘Progress in remediating dangerous cladding’, dated 7 June 2021

Parliament page

1 Mar 2021 Correspondence from Jeremy Pocklington, Permanent Secretary, Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government, re Progress in remediating dangerous cladding, 24 February 2021

Parliament page

26 Jan 2021 Correspondence from Jeremy Pocklington, Permanent Secretary, Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government, re Remediation of dangerous cladding, dated 18 January 2021

Parliament page

13 Jan 2021 Correspondence from Jeremy Pocklington, Permanent Secretary, Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government, re Building Safety Fund – Risks of committing all £1bn by end of March 2021, dated 22 December 2020

Parliament page