Housing secretary Michael Gove has warned the shareholders of three cladding firms of ‘severe consequences’ if they fail to put forward plans to help fix unsafe buildings.
He has written to investors in the companies urging them to use their ‘position of influence’ to encourage the firms to engage constructively in finding ‘a just resolution for all concerned’.
Materials produced by Kingspan, Arconic and Saint-Gobain or their subsidiaries were part of the cladding system installed at Grenfell Tower in west London, which caught fire in 2017 killing 72 people.
The subsequent inquiry into tragedy found the cladding system, installed during a flawed refurbishment, was the primary cause of the spread of flames.
Investors in the firms were told that if the manufacturers do not come forward with a comprehensive financial package, the focus of the department for levelling up, housing and communities would be ‘trained upon them’.
Mr Gove said: ‘It cannot be right that cladding companies continue to profit whilst so many innocent, hardworking people face financial hardship and misery.
‘To those cladding companies who fail to do the right thing: you will face severe consequences and I will use all commercial and legal tools available to me to ensure you take responsibility.’
Mr Gove added that there would likely be consequences for shareholders’ reputations if the secretary of state was forced to use the ‘legal and commercial tools available’ to ensure the position of the cladding companies ‘becomes extremely uncomfortable’.
