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

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what obligations there are on those responsible for fire safety in blocks below 11 metres to a) identify and b) remedy unsafe cladding and other fire safety defects.

For blocks of flats below 11 metres in England, the Responsible Person is required under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 to ensure that a suitable and sufficient fire risk assessment is carried out, recorded, kept under review and updated as necessary. In buildings containing two or more sets of domestic premises, this must include the building’s external walls, including cladding.

Where a more detailed assessment of the external wall is needed, a Fire Risk Appraisal of External Walls (FRAEW), undertaken in accordance with PAS 9980, can be used to identify appropriate measures to reduce the risk.

The Responsible Person must take appropriate and proportionate action in response to the risks identified, which may include remediation of unsafe cladding or other fire safety defects, or other appropriate mitigation measures. Where remediation is required, building owners should not pass the costs on to leaseholders and should instead seek to recover them from those responsible for constructing unsafe homes.