Fire and Safety Bill-Local Leaseholders let down by government.

Dagenham and Rainham MP Jon Cruddas today writes:

The government pushed through its Fire Safety Bill in Parliament, rejecting calls to relieve leaseholders from the financial burdens of meeting the costs of removing building cladding and other potentially hazardous materials.

I who voted to safeguard leaseholders, said that the government’s reneging on promises given will cause real concern to local leaseholders.

Jon said “The financial support package the government announced is totally inadequate. For buildings over 18 metres in height the costs of installing fire breaks and removing any flammable material that is not cladding is not covered and will fall to leaseholders to pay. Those in buildings between 11 and 18 metres high will now be saddled with debts to remove cladding and leaseholders in buildings of three storeys or less have been completely ignored.

The government should have put together a scheme that placed responsibility for all safety costs on the developers and building freeholders that have profited. Instead innocent leaseholders are to pick up the tab. Many of these will be people taking the first step on the property ladder as urged by this government, only to find themselves placed in financial difficulty by the same government.

Locally we have people in Orchard Village South Hornchurch and New Enterprise House Chadwell Heath who are directly affected. I will continue to work with them to support them with their building owners.”