The Government says The Remediation Bill will:
- create certainty of which buildings require cladding remediation and to what standard
- give regulators the powers they need to hold the worst blockers to account, ensuring those responsible for fixing historic and ongoing failures do so more quickly
- make the companies that made unsafe building products contribute to fix the problems they caused
- ensure all residents have a route to remediation, and that no building is left behind.
A guide to what is included in the draft legislation is here: Guide to the Remediation Bill
The Government says the Building Safety (Remediation of Unsafe Cladding etc) Bill will:
1. Create certainty of which buildings require cladding remediation and to what standard
It is essential that we are clear about the scale of unsafe cladding. The bill will introduce a register of all residential, 11 to 18 metre-high buildings in England. It will also require those responsible for these buildings to assess them for fire-safety risks within twelve months of the legislation coming into force. The bill will mandate a consistent approach for Fire Risk Assessments of External Walls (FRAEWs) and compel auditing so FRAEWs are carried out properly.
2. Give regulators the powers they need to hold the worst blockers to account, ensuring those responsible for fixing historic and ongoing failures do so more quickly
To work effectively, the current system must be strengthened and underpinned with effective sanctions to incentivise action. The bill’s legal duty will require those responsible to remediate residential buildings over 11 metres high, in line with recommendations in FRAEWs. Regulators will be able to act against those delaying remediation, including criminal prosecution for the worst cases, and require information on building ownership to help identify and pursue those responsible. Other measures will improve co-operation and accountability between the various regulators.
3. Make the companies that made unsafe building products contribute to fix the problems they caused
The government has committed £5.15 billion to remediate buildings in England; and the cost to the 53 developers who have signed the Developer Remediation Contract is estimated at £4.2 billion. Construction product manufacturers have yet to contribute. The bill will make it easier for a claim to be brought against a manufacturer who has supplied unsafe construction products. It will also expand the pool of parties who can bring a claim, including to developers.
4. Ensure all residents have a route to remediation, and that no building is left behind
The current system lacks legal mechanisms to ensure remediation work is completed where those responsible for a building are absent or determined to ignore their building safety obligations. The bill will introduce a last-resort backstop mechanism to allow a public authority to carry out remediation work themselves. Through remediation management orders, a tribunal may allow a relevant authority to take control of works and recover costs from the responsible party.
The bill also contains amendments to previous legislation, designed to protect residents and ensure there are routes to remediation where building ownership is unclear, absent or negligent.
Some bill measures will require secondary legislation for implementation. We anticipate that secondary legislation will be made within one year of Royal Assent.
The FAQs cover some key points of interest to Friends in High Places members:
Will leaseholders have to pay additional costs for the legal duty to remediate?
There is government funding in place for all work required by the legal duty to remediate – meaning that leaseholders should not pay towards the cost of remediation conducted under this duty.
What if there are concerns with the quality of an FRAEW produced under the legal duty to remediate?
The bill is designed to make sure FRAEWs carried out under the legal duty to remediate are consistent, high-quality and clearly identify the cladding remediation a building needs. This includes mandatory independent auditing of assessments. All FRAEWs that recommend remediation will be audited, and – for the first time – a proportion of FRAEWs that conclude no remediation is necessary.
Residents who have concerns about the safety of their building can already raise this through Homes England’s ‘Tell Us’ tool. They may also be able to raise concerns with their local regulator, who has powers to investigate where appropriate.
Will a responsible entity be compliant with the duty to remediate if their building is in interim measures?
Interim measures – such as waking watch patrols – are temporary mitigations. They are not an acceptable long-term alternative to permanent remediation because their costs are disproportionate compared with long-term measures and their long-term use adversely impacts residents and local regulators.
To be compliant with the legal duty to remediate, responsible entities must carry out the works recommended in FRAEW to make their buildings sustainably safe. Buildings put in interim measures to support a temporary change in evacuation strategy, must be remediated so that the interim measures can be stood down.
Will right to manage companies and resident management companies be subject to penalties under the legal duty to remediate?
The department is committed to supporting Right to Manage Companies (RTMs) and Resident Management Companies (RMCs) in delivering their responsibilities. We recognise that many are volunteer-led organisations and that the building safety and remediation landscape can be complex to navigate.
That is why the bill is accompanied by a package of measures designed to provide clarity and support. We will make regulations setting out the remediation steps required to comply with the legal duty to remediate, supported by statutory guidance on when those steps should be taken. Together with wider guidance, this will provide a clear compliance roadmap, helping RTMs and RMCs understand what is expected of them and reducing uncertainty about their obligations.
The purpose of the bill is to drive action where responsible entities are failing to remediate unsafe cladding, not to penalise those who are making genuine efforts to comply. Regulators are expected under the Regulators’ Code to support compliance through advice, guidance and engagement where appropriate, and the legal duty to remediate is intended to focus enforcement on persistent inaction and poor behaviour rather than resident-led organisations that are taking reasonable steps to progress remediation.
Where enforcement action is required, there are important safeguards to ensure it remains fair and proportionate. Regulators must take account of the circumstances of each case, including whether there is a reasonable excuse for any failure to comply, such as delays arising from factors outside a responsible entity’s control. In addition, before imposing a financial penalty on a leaseholder-controlled company, regulators will be required to have regard to statutory guidance, including on whether alternative enforcement tools may be more appropriate. Together, these measures help ensure that enforcement is targeted at those failing to meet their responsibilities, while protecting those acting responsibly to make their buildings safe.
Here is a link to the draft legislation if you want to read it in detail: Draft Remediation Bill