Around £200 million will be made available to remove and replace unsafe cladding from more than 166 privately owned high-rise buildings.

The government has stepped in to speed up vital cladding replacement by fully funding the work, eliminating excuses used by some building owners and protecting leaseholders from the costs.

Around £200 million will be made available to remove and replace unsafe aluminium composite material cladding from around 170 privately owned high-rise buildings.

This step has been taken after private building owners failed to take action and tried to offload costs onto leaseholders.

Prime Minister, Theresa May said:

It is of paramount importance that everybody is able to feel and be safe in their homes.

That’s why we asked building owners in the private sector to take action and make sure appropriate safety measures were in place.

And we’ve seen a number of private building owners doing the right thing and taking responsibility, but unfortunately too many are continuing to pass on the costs of removal and replacement to leaseholders.

Today I can confirm we will now be fully funding the replacement of cladding on high-rise private residential buildings so residents can feel confident they are secure in their homes.

Communities Secretary, Rt Hon James Brokenshire MP, said:

Although temporary measures are in place to ensure people living in these buildings are safe, too many owners are treating this as a permanent fix. Others are trying to pass on the costs to residents by threatening them with bills running to thousands of pounds.

While some building owners have been swift to act, and I thank them for doing the right thing, I am now calling time on the delay tactics of others. If these reckless building owners won’t act, the government will.

The government appreciates the work of Grenfell United and the UK Cladding Action Group who have campaigned prominently, outlining the challenges in getting private building owners to fund the replacement of cladding on their homes.

The government has already fully funded this work in social housing developments. However, private developers and freeholders have been too slow to act and leaseholders have been threatened with significant, often unaffordable, costs resulting in delays.

The latest figures show that 166 private buildings are yet to start works on removing and replacing ACM cladding, compared to 23 in the social sector.

Building owners will have 3 months to access the new fund. We will look carefully at those who fail to remediate and consider what further action can be taken.

Building owners and developers who have already fully funded the remediation of buildings are Pemberstone, Aberdeen Asset Management, Barratt Developments, Fraser Properties, Legal & General, Mace and Peabody.

As a condition of funding, we will require the building owner to take reasonable steps to recover the costs from those responsible for the presence of the unsafe cladding.

For the purposes of this press release, high-rise buildings are defined as those above 18 metres in height.

Following the Grenfell Tower fire, the government identified 176 private high-rise residential buildings with unsafe ACM cladding. According to the most recent data compiled by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, 10 of these buildings have completed work to replace the cladding.

The fund will be available for private high-rise residential buildings (those containing homes). The government is already fully-funding the replacement of unsafe ACM cladding on social sector properties.

Following the Grenfell Tower tragedy, the government established a comprehensive building safety programme that included an independent review of fire safety and building regulations. Plans outlined on 18 December 2018 explain how the government will implement the recommendations made by Dame Judith Hackitt in her review of building regulations and fire safety.

Building owners will be able to register for the fund by early July.

Sellafield Ltd has awarded a 20-year contract to 4 organisations, which will help deliver the site’s decommissioning programme.

The Programme and Project Partners (PPP) model is set to revolutionise project delivery at Sellafield, through newly established long-term partnerships.

The Sellafield nuclear site is home to one of the most complex portfolios of construction projects in the world, stretching over many decades.

The new approach will support the transformation of the company from a nuclear operator into a world leader in environmental remediation.

The partnership is made up of 4 ‘lots’, and the contracts have been awarded to:

• Kellogg Brown and Root Ltd (KBR)– Integration partner
• Wood – Design and Engineering partner
• Morgan Sindall Infrastructure – Civils Construction Management partner
• Doosan Babcock Ltd – Process Construction Management partner

Sellafield Ltd will work collaboratively with the 4 lot partners, to deliver major projects in support of the site’s 100-year decommissioning programme.

The new approach is set up to support faster, more effective project delivery, stability in design and construction supply chains, greater workforce flexibility, and local economic benefit.

Paul Foster, CEO for Sellafield Ltd, said:

The award of the PPP contracts marks the start of a new, and very different, journey for Sellafield Ltd and our supply chain partners.

Our number one priority is making Sellafield safer, sooner, and a key part of this is establishing closer relationships with other expert organisations.

Working side by side with our 4 long-term partners, as one team, will help transform the way we deliver projects safely, quickly, and cost effectively.

The new approach also provides huge opportunities for our communities, through 20 years of sustainable employment in the design and construction supply chain, enhancing the skills of the workforce, while helping realise the economic ambitions of our community, to achieve its unlimited potential.

I’d like to congratulate Kellogg Brown and Root Ltd, Wood Nuclear Limited, Morgan Sindall Construction and Infrastructure Ltd and Doosan Babcock Ltd.

We look forward to working in partnership to progress the safe, secure completion of our clean-up mission.

Stuart Bradie, President and Chief Executive Officer of KBR said:

As a pioneer of collaborative working and forging strong alliances, KBR is delighted to have been selected to partner with Sellafield on this enduring project, which will place us at the heart of the customer’s delivery team.

Bob MacDonald, CEO of Wood’s Specialist Technical Solutions business, said:

We already have a deep, shared history with Sellafield and this new appointment provides a platform for us to assist with safe and secure operation and clean-up over the next 2 decades. We are looking forward to working with Sellafield and our partners to maximise socio-economic benefits for local communities.

John Morgan, Chief Executive of Morgan Sindall Group, said:

Our long-standing relationship with Sellafield is very important to the Group. We’re delighted to have secured this opportunity to continue to cement our relationship over the next 20 years.

We look forward to working in partnership with Sellafield Ltd, together with our supply chain, to keep enhancing the local communities where we work.

Andy Colquhoun, CEO of Doosan Babcock commented:

We are delighted to have signed the contract on PPP and look forward to collaborating with Sellafield Ltd and the other 3 partners to meet the significant decommissioning challenges which lie ahead.

Environment Agency Chair, Emma Howard Boyd launches long-term strategy to tackle flooding and coastal change.