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

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, with reference to the research entitled EWS1 or equivalent lender data on mortgage valuations for flats: October 2023 to December 2023, published by his Department on 21 March 2024, if he will make an assessment of the potential implications for his policies of the proportion of mortgage valuations on high rise flats that required an EWS1 form or equivalent in 2023.

The EWS1 form is not a Government process, and we do not support its use in the mortgage process.

To aid transparency, the department does provide data during the process so that people can see how the use of EWS1 forms has changed over time.

We continue to press the industry to accept other forms of assurance other than EWS1s, such as a comprehensive fire risk assessment including the external wall systems, which building owners are mandated to carry out, under the Fire Safety Act 2021.