Gove threatens trading ban on cladding firms unless they pay for repairs
Michael Gove has threatened a UK trading ban on manufacturers of combustible cladding and insulation unless they pay to fix dangerous housing.
Opening a new front in the government’s attempt to force the construction industry to fix billions of pounds’ worth of fire safety defects, the secretary of state for levelling up, housing and communities has given the companies a March deadline to agree a settlement.
In a letter to the industry, Gove highlighted more than £700m in profits made over the last four years by the three firms most closely associated with the Grenfell disaster – likely to mean Arconic, Celotex and Kingspan, which made the combustible cladding panels and insulation foam on Grenfell Tower, where a fire in June 2017 killed 72 people.
He described as “extremely alarming” evidence revealed by the Grenfell Tower public inquiry about how firms manufactured, tested and marketed their combustible materials.
Gove told the Construction Products Association in a letter: “The total contribution from the cladding and insulation sector must represent a significant portion of the total remediation costs, caused by the dangerous products sold by some of your members.
“I am offering a window of opportunity, between now and March, for the sector to work with my department through open and transparent negotiations to agree a settlement that will restore confidence and secure an appropriate contribution from the sector.”
If they failed to pay up, he said, he would consider “using our regulatory framework to limit any culpable company from operating and selling products in this country in the future”.
He added: “I will pursue those individuals and firms liable for building defects who are unwilling to do the right thing now. There
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