Eleven housing developers face a ban from constructing new buildings in England, having failed so far to sign the contract committing them to remediating safety issues.

Businesses who have not committed to the Building Safety Contract now face being “not able to commence new developments in England or receive building control approval for work that is already underway,” Housing Secretary Michael Gove told the House of Commons on Tuesday.

In January, house-building companies were given six weeks to sign a legally binding agreement that will commit them to funding repairs to unsafe buildings in England that they have developed or refurbished over the last 30 years.The legal commitment solidifies a pledge made last year by 49 developers to remediate critical safety works.

According to figures released on by government, 39 developers had signed the contract by the deadline of 14 March.

Four companies who signed last year’s pledge were “subsequently found not to have developed buildings which are within its scope” and are therefore not required to sign for now.

Eleven developers have not signed the contract. Gove confirmed that “while the overwhelming majority of major developers have signed, some, regrettably, have not”.

Source: Politics Home