Hundreds of thousands of residents still in dark over dangerous cladding, watchdog warns

Seven years after the Grenfell Tower tragedy hundreds of thousands of residents are still in the dark about when their buildings will be made safe, a new report warns.

Highlighting slow progress to remove dangerous cladding, the public spending watchdog today urges ministers to publish a target date for completing all work.

The National Audit Office (NAO) report says work on tower blocks over 18 metres with the most dangerous form of cladding are now complete or nearing completion. But it warns that of the 9,000 to 12,000 buildings over 11 metres the government estimates will need work, just 4,771 buildings have been identified. This leaves 60% of buildings yet to be identified.

The NAO report said the impacts of dangerous cladding "have extended far beyond the immediate victims of the Grenfell fire, with many people suffering significant financial and emotional distress".

It warned completing works - known as remediation - to make all buildings safe at an estimated cost of £16 billion might not be achieved in the next decade. Campaigners have repeatedly criticised the slow progress of the work in the seven years since the Grenfell Tower fire claimed the lives of 72 people in 2017.

Last month a landmark final report by the public inquiry into the tragedy found it was the result of "decades of failure" by those in power with firms having "deliberately concealed" information about the dangers of cladding products.

Gareth Davies, head of the NAO, said: “Seven years on from the Grenfell Tower fire, there has been progress, but considerable uncertainty remains regarding the number of buildings needing remediation, costs, timelines and recouping public spending.

"There is a long way to go before all affected buildings are made safe, and risks MHCLG must address if its approach is to succeed."

Sir Geoffrey Clifton-Brown, chairman of the Public Accounts Committee said many residents remain "in the dark about when their homes will be made safe".

He said: "The programme is falling behind schedule and MHCLG needs to pick up the pace to get it back on track. There is a long road ahead to resolve the cladding crisis and the Government must take steps to better protect the taxpayer. It urgently needs to ensure its fraud controls are working and that developers contribute their fair share to the costs."

Building safety Minister Alex Norris said: “The pace of remediation to make homes safe has been unacceptably slow. This government is taking action - meeting our commitment to invest £5.1 billion to remove dangerous cladding and making sure those responsible pay for the rest.

“This Government will protect leaseholders and empower regulators to take enforcement action against those building owners who fail to act. Since coming into office, we have ramped up work with local authorities and regulators to speed up remediation and we will set out a Remediation Acceleration Plan soon.”