UK government introduces bill imposing legal duty to fix unsafe cladding in England

The UK government introduced the Building Safety (Remediation of Unsafe Cladding etc) Bill to Parliament on 14 October 2026. In a press release, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) said the bill would create a new legal duty for those responsible for residential buildings, such as freeholders, to identify, assess and fix unsafe cladding without delay. The UK Parliament website lists the text of the bill as introduced in the House of Commons (Bill 155 2026-27) with the date 14 October 2026. At the time of writing, the website did not yet give a date for its first reading.

The government expects the bill to speed up remediation for around 12,000 residents. The ministry said this includes around 3,000 residents whose buildings benefit from the remediation backstop and “may never have been remediated otherwise”. It also said that nine years after the Grenfell Tower tragedy, too many buildings still have unsafe cladding.

Duty, plans and penalties

The government published a guide to the bill the same day. According to the guide, the duty would apply to multi-occupied residential buildings in England that are over 11 metres high or have at least five storeys and were completed before 28 June 2022. Buildings covered by the developer remediation contract, which 53 developers have signed, would be excluded because similar requirements already apply to them.

Failing to comply without a reasonable excuse would be an offence, and anyone who obstructs the work could face criminal penalties. The First-tier Tribunal could fine responsible entities up to £500,000 if they fail to comply with a Remediation Order. Where a fire risk appraisal of external walls (FRAEW) recommends work, owners would have to produce a Remediation Compliance Plan within 15 months of Royal Assent and share it with residents.

The bill would also create a register of all residential buildings between 11 and 18 metres high in England. Owners who fail to register could face civil penalties of up to £7,000, rising to £40,000 or prosecution.

As a last resort, Homes England or local authorities could carry out the work themselves if those responsible keep failing to act. Leaseholders in buildings with no effective owner would get clearer legal routes to take over the building’s management. Those who have paid for remediation would get a simpler way to recover costs from cladding manufacturers. The guide states that the government has committed £5.15bn and that remediation is estimated to cost developers £4.2bn, while “construction product manufacturers have yet to contribute”.

The government still expects every building over 11 metres with unsafe cladding to be either remediated or given a clear completion date by the end of 2029.

Scale of the problem

MHCLG data published on 30 September 2026 show that at the end of August the department was monitoring 4,724 residential buildings of 11 metres and over with unsafe cladding. Of these, 2,571 (54%) had started or completed works and 1,849 (39%) had completed them. The ministry estimates that another 1,100 to 2,600 such buildings are still waiting to be confirmed as eligible for a remediation programme. The House of Commons Library notes that MHCLG does not publish estimates for buildings under 11 metres.

The government said more than 470 further buildings have reported completing cladding remediation since the Remediation Acceleration Plan was published in December 2024. It said this has helped around 35,000 more residents feel safer in their homes.

Reactions and next steps

Building Safety Minister Baroness Blake said: “This Bill is a milestone in our mission to right these wrongs and ensure everyone feels confident in the safety of their home.” Amy Rees, chief executive of Homes England, called the measures “an important step in accelerating remediation”. Charlie Pugsley, acting chief executive of the Building Safety Regulator, said the regulator would continue to support the government.

The bill still has to pass all of its Commons stages and then go through the House of Lords. No date for its second reading had been published at the time of writing. The government expects secondary legislation needed for some measures to be made within one year of Royal Assent. Reactions from opposition parties could not be established.