New coalition announced to tackle unsafe cladding in London

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, has announced a new coalition aimed at ending London’s cladding crisis.

The Joint Remediation Partnership Board, which includes members of City Hall, the government, local councils, the London Fire Brigade and regulatory bodies, will work on a plan to accelerate the removal of unsafe cladding from residential buildings over 11 metres.

The news comes after the government announced a plan to fix unsafe cladding by 2029.

Everyone deserves the right to live in a safe home

According to the London Assembly, the scale of the building safety crisis in London is unprecedented due to the volume and concentration of buildings with unsafe cladding.

The London Assembly research reveals there are currently 1513 buildings in government remediation programmes that have not yet started on site.

Mr Khan says the Joint Remediation Partnership Board will help to speed up the removal of dangerous cladding in the capital.

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, said: “This is a significant step forward in speeding up the removal of dangerous cladding in London, which had been far too slow under the previous government.

“Everyone deserves the right to live in a safe home, a right denied to the residents of Grenfell Tower. I will not stop until we can say with confidence that the failings which led to this disaster will never be repeated. I will continue to work hand-in-hand with the government, London Councils, the London Fire Brigade and the sector to take swift action to remove dangerous cladding on buildings as we continue to build a safer London for everyone.”

Faster progress must be made in removing unsafe cladding

Cllr Grace Williams, London Councils’ executive member for housing and regeneration, says the coalition will help drive progress.

She said: “Boroughs’ overriding priority is to ensure every Londoner is safe – and feels safe – in their home. Faster progress must be made in removing unsafe cladding and it is vital this coalition of key partners help bring together our respective powers, resources and influence to accelerate remediation.

“It is also pivotal that boroughs and our partners have sufficient resources to enforce standards. There is currently a massive squeeze on London’s housing budgets, which makes it harder to modernise buildings and address safety concerns, as well as holding us back from building the new housing we desperately need.”

Share This Article