Ruth Cadbury MP slams Government for ‘letting down’ leaseholders over building safety costs after Fire Safety Bill passes through Parliament.

Ruth Cadbury MP has criticised the Government for letting down leaseholders after the recent passage of the Fire Safety Bill, despite the Prime Minister and Ministers regularly promising that leaseholders will not by liable for the costs.Speaking during a debate on the post-Grenfell Fire Safety Bill last week Ruth criticised the Government for failing to protect leasehold flat owners from paying the cost of fixing fire safety and cladding defects on their blocks.In her speech Ruth also criticised the gaps in the Governments building safety fund which excludes buildings below 18 metres high. Ruth also spoke about the human cost for residents in at least 25 blocks in the constituency, living in potentially unsafe buildings, who face anxiety over their safety and who remain unable to sell their homes.Ruth then voted for an amendment to the Fire Safety Bill which would have prevented leaseholders from facing the cost of fixing these faults- however this amendment was voted down by the Government and the bill was then passed.In a full statement afterwards Ruth said,‘‘Once again this Government has broken its promises to leaseholders up and down the country.Despite efforts by opposition MPs to amend and change this bill to protect leaseholders the Government decided to push it through without any protections for leaseholders- leaving many families trapped in unsafe homes that they are unable to sell.I know from talking to residents locally how worried and anxious many of them are about the huge costs that they face to fix building safety defects. I’ve always been clear that leaseholders and residents should not have to pay these costs. On top of that many residents locally are unable to sell their homes.I will continue to campaign both locally and in Parliament to protect leaseholders and residents, and to ensure that the Government finally honours its promises.’’  Notes to Editors

1. On Wednesday 28th April Ruth Cadbury voted in favour of Lords Amendment 4L, which sought to prevent leaseholders from having to pay the costs to fix remedial work. The full text of this amendment can be found here. This amendment was defeated in a vote on Wednesday 28th by 322 votes to 256- details of the vote can be found here.   
2. Ruth’s full speech during the Fire Safety Bill Debate can be found here.