To support the new measures, an independent construction expert, David Hancock, has also now been appointed to review the progress of removing unsafe ACM claddings from buildings, amid growing frustration about the slow pace of the replacement programme nearly three years after the Grenfell disaster.
Reforms being introduced in the Building Safety Bill include new powers to prosecute firms that fail to comply with stricter requirements.
Construction products such as cladding materials will also face greater scrutiny under the new regime.
Mr Jenrick said he understood the impact of coronavirus had made it a “difficult time” for construction firms, but insisted the removal of dangerous cladding was a “top priority” as he urged work to continue.
Responding to the announcement, Lord Porter, the Local Government Association’s building safety spokesman, urged ministers to go further and fund retrofitting of sprinklers or water mist systems in existing tower blocks, commenting.
“The Government’s announcement that the remediation of cladding remains a top priority is positive news, and industry and duty-holders now need to step up and deliver the work required…
Residents of existing blocks deserve the same safety standards as those in new buildings, and the Government should fund the retrofitting of sprinklers in existing blocks of flats once the current crisis is over.”
