The mayor of London has accused the government of “dither and delay” over proposed fire safety rules. In a letter to Housing Secretary Michael Gove, Sadiq Khan said 34,000 homes on major development sites in the capital were unable to proceed due to uncertainty. The new rules are expected to require all new buildings in England taller than 18m to have a second staircase.
The government says it is working to design transitional arrangements. Mr Khan said he supported the “highest standards of fire safety” but that the policy was announced without transitional arrangements or detail of technical requirements for compliance.
The government had initially proposed setting the height limit for buildings with only one staircase at 30m – a rule Mr Khan introduced in London in February, although there remains no such requirement in the rest of England.
But in a speech in July, Mr Gove revealed the England-wide limit would instead be set at 18m, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS). Mr Khan wrote: “The manner of the announcement has left planning authorities and developers in limbo, at a time when the national housing crisis means the sector can ill afford to slow development.”
Mr Gove promised in his speech there would be “transitional arrangements in place to make sure that there is no disruption to housing supply”.
City Hall claimed councils and housing developers currently have no guidance on what the transition period will allow for, or what technical requirements will be needed to satisfy the new rules.
Mr Khan told Mr Gove: “New data from the major schemes that cross my desk reveal that there are 34,000 homes which are impacted by the proposed new second staircase requirement. “They are in limbo at various stages of their evolution within the development sector while they wait for clarity from your department.”
A Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities spokesperson said proposed rules for buildings of 18m or taller will ensure “people have confidence that their homes are safe to live in”. “We are working rapidly with industry and regulators to design transitional arrangements with the aim of securing the viability of projects which are already underway, avoiding delays where there are other more appropriate mitigations,” the spokesperson added.
