The government has committed 36 developers to sign a legally binding pledge to remediate the unsafe cladding used on any buildings over 11 metres that they have been involved with over the last 30 years.
Developers have committed a minimum of £2 billion to fix their own buildings. Industry will also pay up to a further £3 billion through an expansion to the Building Safety Levy – chargeable on all new residential buildings in England – which ensures no leaseholder in medium-rise buildings will face crippling bills, even when their developer cannot be traced.
Since 10th January, Michael Gove, Secretary of State for the Department of Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC), has been clear in his approach to resetting building safety: the industry responsible should pay to fix the problems it created.
This was reflected in clauses added to the Building Safety Bill in February that ensured leaseholders in blocks above 11 metres are not responsible for paying for cladding remediation. The clauses cover legal powers to block developers that refuse to pay from further development, by refusing them planning permission and building control sign-off in future.
As of 12th April, 36 developers have now signed a legally binding pledge to remediate life critical fire safety works in buildings over 11 metres that they have played a role in developing or refurbishing over the last 30 years in England.
The developers have also agreed to reimburse any funding received from government remediation programmes in relation to buildings they had a role in developing or refurbishing. The government is also in touch with several other developers who are considering the pledge.
Michael Gove said:
“Today marks a significant step towards protecting innocent leaseholders and ensuring those responsible pay to solve the crisis they helped to cause.
I welcome the move by many of the largest developers to do the right thing.
But this is just the beginning. We will do whatever it takes to hold industry to account, and under our new measures there will be nowhere to hide.”
The DLUHC said:
“These agreements were reached following constructive discussions with developers and the Home Builders Federation and will protect leaseholders from the costs of remediation of life-critical fire safety defects.
Each developer will be expected shortly to sign a legally binding contract reflecting these pledges and inform leaseholders in affected buildings how they will be meeting their commitments.
The work does not stop here. The Government is fully committed to ensuring those responsible pay to fix the problems they created. We will continue to pursue those who played a role in developing unsafe buildings.”
On the progress made with manufacturers, the DLUHC said:
“Unlike the approach taken by responsible developers, cladding and insulation manufacturers have not delivered. The Secretary of State has written today to the Construction Products Association and warned he will do whatever it takes to hold them to account.”
This pledge and the Building Safety Levy will not come without a cost, however. A study commissioned by the Home Builders Federation found that the cladding costs will result in 56,380 fewer homes being built over the next decade, with the majority of such homes being affordable ones.
The full list of developers who have signed up to the pledge is available here.
