Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many high-rise blocks owned by local authorities and housing associations will have their cladding removed between 1 November 2018 and 20 March 2019.

The Government will fully fund the removal and replacement of unsafe Aluminium Cladding Material (ACM) cladding systems on social residential buildings which are 18 metres and over and owned by councils and housing associations, with costs estimated at £400 million.

The Building Safety Programme releases monthly data on the identification and remediation status of high-rise residential buildings with unsafe ACM cladding systems. As at 31 October 2018, 28 have finished remediation, 87 have started remediation, and 40 have a remediation plan in place. The latest data release is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/building-safety-programme-monthly-data-release-end-october-2018.

The remediation of buildings with unsafe ACM cladding systems is a complex process. Remediation work involves addressing any issues with the exterior cladding system and broader fire safety systems for each building. All of this work takes time and varies considerably depending on the building structure, extent of cladding, and existing fire safety systems.