Welcome for Mortgage Lending and Cladding Working Group recommendations

The Law Society has welcomed a report published today, 19 March 2021, by the Ministerial Working Group on Mortgage Lending and Cladding.

The report has recommended implementing a Single Building Assessment programme to carry out safety assessments of high rise buildings and using public funding towards remediation work required. The Scottish Government has accepted all of the working group’s recommendations, including investing the funding it has so far received from the UK Government to address cladding problems.

John Sinclair, Convener of the Law Society of Scotland Property Law Committee, said: “This is good news for residents in high rise buildings. I’m very pleased that all of the working group’s recommendations have been accepted.

“A single source delivery is the right approach to take to ensure that a whole building is inspected and consistent standards will apply across the country. It will provide a clear picture of just how widespread the issue is and the scale of work needed to rectify the cladding on affected buildings.

“The current situation has left homeowners very concerned about the safety of their buildings and a number have been unable to sell their properties. The assessment programme should begin as soon as is practicable to identify those buildings which require work, to help target the best use of the available funding and to help bring residents peace of mind about the safety of their homes.

“The Law Society has been part of the working group discussions and I’m grateful to my colleague on the Property Law Committee, Brian Smith, for his input on behalf of the legal profession. I hope that the Minister will continue with the working group to develop these proposals and to ensure swift progress with these cladding issues.”