All parts of the construction industry bear responsibility for crisis, CPA boss says following breakdown of government talks

Contractors and architects need to contribute to the government鈥檚 拢4bn cladding fund, the boss of the product sector鈥檚 leading trade body has said.

Construction Products Association (CPA) chief executive Peter Caplehorn said materials firms and housebuilders were not the only sectors responsible for the cladding crisis and the government should look at a 鈥渂roader picture鈥.

The comments follow last week鈥檚 dramatic end to negotiations between the government and the CPA over the product sector鈥檚 financial contributions towards the costs of remediating unsafe buildings.

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Housebuilders and products firms want contractors to pay their fair share of repair costs as well

Housing secretary Michael Gove said he considered the talks to have 鈥渃oncluded鈥 after no agreement was reached and promised to do 鈥渨hatever it takes鈥 to hold the sector to account, including pursuing firms through the courts.

He accused the sector of failing to show leadership by not agreeing to a funding settlement and warned that there would be 鈥渟ignificant commercial and reputational consequences for those firms that have not stepped up鈥.

The government said that 35 housebuilders have now signed up to its cladding pledge to fix building safety issues on residential blocks and has called on products firms to play their part as well.

While the country鈥檚 biggest housebuilders, including Barratt, Persimmon and Taylor Wimpey, have signed the pledge, the executive chair of the industry body that represents them, the Home Builders Federation, said other parts of the building industry now needed to put their hands in their pockets as well.

Stewart Baseley added: 鈥淚 think other actors who are equally involved in this 鈥 construction product manufacturers, contractors, freeholders, overseas developers 鈥 [should also pay].鈥

Caplehorn told 好色先生TV the government had been aiming for a 鈥渟imple solution鈥 to a problem that he said was complex and needed the involvement of all parts of the construction industry.

鈥淭here鈥檚 a lot of other parts of the industry that need to be part of the conversation,鈥 he said, adding that a funding settlement should include 鈥渆verybody involved鈥ho had authority in how these buildings were put together鈥.

Asked how contractors would be able to afford the costs involved, he said: 鈥淚 get that different parts of the industry have different business models but I think it鈥檚 important that they are part of the discussion and it would not be beyond the wit of man to invent a contribution system which is proportionate.鈥

In a letter to the CPA last week, Gove said product manufacturers had used the scale of the problem as 鈥渁n excuse to do nothing, slowly鈥.

But Caplehorn said it had undertaken a 鈥渟ignificant amount of proactive comment, proactive action, it just doesn鈥檛 fit totally with the formula or the way of looking at it that has come forward from the secretary of state鈥.

He added: 鈥淵ou can鈥檛 just say 鈥榬ight we are going to put a whole lot of money in a pot and then go out and sort out some buildings鈥.

鈥淲e need to figure out exactly how the process is done and who is contributing and how they are contributing and I think that is really quite a complicated set of criteria.鈥

Last month, the CPA had said that it had been unable to reach a consensus among its members on funding contributions because of insufficient data on the amount of work required on buildings.

The group said that a survey of each affected building needed to be undertaken to identify safety issues. Gove responded by saying that leaseholders 鈥渄o not have the luxury of waiting years for every building to be assessed before funding is committed鈥.

Caplehorn admitted that there was not time to carry out an investigation of every building but added that 鈥渋n order to spend any funding wisely you would need to know that information before you start the work.

鈥淚 sympathise greatly with people saying we鈥檙e trying to make this too complicated and we鈥檙e trying to see what we can do to delay things, but that鈥檚 not true.

Housebuilders to have signed Michael Gove鈥檚 cladding costs pledge

  • Avant
  • Ballymore
  • Barratt
  • Bellway
  • Berkeley
  • Bewley
  • Bloor
  • Cala
  • Churchill Retirement
  • CG Fry
  • Countryside
  • Crest Nicholson*
  • Croudace
  • Davidsons
  • Fairview
  • Gleeson
  • Hill Group
  • Jelson
  • Keepmoat Homes
  • Tilia
  • Lioncourt Homes
  • London Square
  • Lovell
  • Mactaggart & Mickel
  • McCarthy & Stone
  • Miller Homes
  • Morris Homes
  • Persimmon
  • Redrow
  • Rowland Homes
  • Strata
  • St Modwen
  • Taylor Wimpey
  • Vistry Partnership
  • Wainhomes
  • William Davis

*Signalled intent

鈥淚t is a case that buildings are complicated and where we actually have buildings where we don鈥檛 know what is installed and therefore you鈥檙e discovering this stuff for the first time when you take it apart it is difficult and it has to be worked through which is why the process has to be logical.鈥

Caplehorn said that manufacturers are now 鈥渆xtremely concerned鈥 about where the current situation will lead and admitted that the sector was now in a 鈥渨orse situation鈥 than it was when talks with the government were still ongoing.

Since January, the government has been carrying out talks with both the housing and construction products sectors over industry contributions towards ending the building safety crisis.

followed the government announcing all the major housebuilders had signed a pledge to fix building safety problems in their own properties.

The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities said in a statement that any of the companies that remained to make the pledge would be blocked from building and selling new homes under powers also tabled in the 好色先生TV Safety Bill.