News
Govt gives councils £8m to pursue cladding-dodging building owners
The government has given 59 councils in England £8m in funding to track down building owners who are refusing to repair cladding on properties.
This will be carried out by enforcement teams and action will be prioritised in areas with the highest number of unsafe buildings such as Manchester, Birmingham and London.
The Building Safety Act means freeholders are responsible for paying remediation costs, not leaseholders. Some of the UK’s biggest housebuilders have committed money for construction, while buildings where a developer has not been identified or they refuse to pay the £4.5bn Building Safety Fund is available.
Lee Rowley, minister for building safety, said: “Building owners must get essential cladding repairs done as quickly as possible and we will be relentless in pursuing those who do not.
“We are bolstering council enforcement operations, making them better equipped to make the most of the powers they have to hold freeholders to account and prevent them from dragging their heels.
“I look forward to working with councils to ensure we keep up the pressure on freeholders so they step up to the plate.”
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Cllr Dora Dixon-Fyle, cabinet member for community safety at Southwark Council, said: “We’ve been taking enforcement action against private residential building owners who haven’t completed necessary cladding work for some years now. This is part of our thorough fire safety measures that look to keep people safe.
“However, we have far more high-rise buildings than many other London boroughs, meaning that this funding will support a much-needed expansion of our work.”