Tory MPs blast ministers over cladding crisis in the wake of Grenfell inferno

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Incompetent! Tory MPs blast ministers over cladding crisis in the wake of Grenfell inferno

  • MPs of all stripes rounded on Government during a landmark Commons debate
  • Labour motion called on ministers to provide funding to fix unsafe homes
  • But the vote not binding although campaigners hailed it as ‘encouraging’  

By Miles Dilworth Money Mail Reporter

Published: | Updated:

Tory MPs yesterday accused ministers of ‘incompetence’ in their response to the cladding crisis in the wake of the Grenfell Tower disaster.

Politicians from all parties rounded on the Government during a landmark Commons debate last night – and warned more leaseholders will go bankrupt if urgent action is not taken.

A Labour motion calling on ministers to provide immediate funding to fix unsafe homes and spare leaseholders the crippling financial burden passed by 263 votes to zero.

The vote is not binding and Tory MPs were told to abstain, but campaigners hailed it as ‘encouraging’ and called on Boris Johnson to heed the demands of his own backbenchers.

More than 70 MPs spoke out during the debate while Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick was slammed for skipping the vote.

It came after the Daily Mail launched a campaign to end the cladding scandal within 18 months and spare leaseholders the cost. This newspaper also wants firms responsible for the safety failures to pay their fair share.

Pictured, the Grenfell Tower inferno r in the Lancaster West Estate in North Kensington – the disaster was the worst residential fire since WWII

Hundreds of thousands of leaseholders face average costs of £40,000 each – and some of up to £115,000 – to replace dangerous cladding, similar to that found on the Grenfell Tower in Kensington, west London, where an inferno killed 72 people in June 2017.

Just 216 out of a possible 11,760 dangerous buildings have been fixed since the fire.

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer said last night: ‘I’m really pleased the Mail is running the campaign. Everybody I’ve met who understands what the problem is thinks that this is a complete injustice, so by bringing it to public attention the Mail is increasing the chances of justice.’

Sir Keir said it was ‘unimaginable’ that the Government could not meet the deadline of fixing all unsafe homes by June next year.

He added: ‘What I want to see is some real energy from the Government, to front some of the money themselves, identify the highest risk blocks and get on with it. But we must also go after the developers and builders.’

Charlotte Warner and partner Aubrey Reynolds are unable to sell or remortgage their flat due to the huge bill being demanded for repairs to remedy the cladding issues that arose after the Grenfell disaster.

Charlotte Warner and partner Aubrey Reynolds are unable to sell or remortgage their flat due to the huge bill being demanded for repairs to remedy the cladding issues that arose after the Grenfell disaster.

Stuck in an unsafe flat, family plans are on hold 

 

A couple who cannot sell their flat due to the cladding scandal say their family plans have been put on hold.

Charlotte Warner, 35, and Aubrey Reynolds, 37, hoped to move out of their one-bed flat in Bow, east London, and into a family home.

But they are stuck because their development, which has around 150 flats, failed a fire safety test – meaning they cannot sell or remortgage their £320,000 property. Residents are trying to make the developer, Vistri, pay for the works, but are concerned about a costly legal battle.

Mr Reynolds, a film producer, said he has sleepless nights living in an unsafe property, unsure when it will be fixed or how much it will cost.

He added: ‘We want to start a family. But not in a one-bed flat. My partner cries because she feels her biological clock ticking.’

Miss Warner, who works as a buyer for Paperchase, said: ‘We can’t move, we don’t have a timescale – it’s the uncertainty for us.’

Labour is also calling on the Government to establish a taskforce to examine the extent of dangerous cladding in England.

The Government avoided a rebellion during last night’s vote by ordering Tory MPs to abstain.

But it did not escape fierce criticism from Conservative backbenchers, who said its attempts to fix the crisis had made matters worse for leaseholders. Stephen McPartland, Tory MP for Stevenage, said the Government ‘had been incompetent throughout this saga’.

Several Conservatives offered their support for the amendments, signalling the Government faces a strong challenge when the Bill returns to the Commons.

Dame Margaret Hodge, Labour MP for Barking in east London, accused ministers of abandoning leaseholders who had been left to ‘live on the edge from one pay cheque to the next’. Housing minister Chris Pincher said the Government will announce ‘very shortly’ a financial solution to protect leaseholders from high costs to deal with unsafe cladding.

Emma Byrne, of the End Our Cladding Scandal campaign, said: ‘It was encouraging to hear that so many MPs from all political parties understand the awful circumstances in which so many of us are living.

‘The fact that Robert Jenrick could not even be bothered to attend shows, tragically, that this issue still does not have the priority it deserves within Government.

‘Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak must now listen to the rising level of concern within their own party. If they do not act to protect leaseholders they will be making a colossal political mistake which will not be forgotten by millions of voters.’

The Government has set aside £1.6billion to fund repairs but MPs estimate the total cost could be closer to £15billion.