Michael Gove, Communities secretary, has outlined new proposals in the Building Safety Bill which could give the government power to block planning permission and building control sign-off on developments if dangerous cladding is not removed. This move will essentially prevent those in the industry from building and selling new homes if they do not follow the measures.
The aim of the legislation is to stop leaseholders having to pay for the removal of dangerous cladding.
The government have guaranteed that it will be put into law that no leaseholder living in medium or high-rise buildings will have to pay a penny for the removal of cladding.
Industry leaders are also being involved in the proposals from the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) and have agreed that leaseholders should not have to face the costs for removing cladding. The Secretary of State, however, has made it clear that he is willing to act with those not forthcoming in making a commitment.
Other changes which come from the amendment of the Building Safety Bill include:
To ensure compliance, the government will also be able to apply its new building safety levy to more developments, with scope for higher rates for those who do not participate in finding a workable solution.
Any organisations attempting to use shell companies to try to avoid consequences for prior actions can also be sued under new powers given to the courts.
Non-cladding costs will also be protected in the package, with developers that still own a building over 11m that they built or refurbished, or landlords linked to an original developer, required to pay in full to fix historic building safety issues in their property.
Those building owners who can afford to pay in full will be expected to provide that money, even if they are not linked to the developer.
Where building owners do not have the resources to pay, there will be a cap set for how much leaseholders will have to pay. Costs for the last five years will be taken into account for the cap.
Michael Gove commented:
"It is time to bring this scandal to an end, protect leaseholders and see the industry work together to deliver a solution. These measures will stop building owners passing all costs on to leaseholders and make sure any repairs are proportionate and necessary for their safety.
All industry must play a part, instead of continuing to profit whilst hardworking families struggle. We cannot allow those who do not take building safety seriously to build homes in the future, and for those not willing to play their part they must face consequences. We will take action to keep homes safe and to protect existing leaseholders from paying the price for bad development."
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