Share your thoughts on building safety levy plans

Proposals have been put forward for a tax on developers to raise funds to address building safety issues in Scotland, and the public’s views are being sought on these plans. The proposed Scottish Building Safety Levy, set to be introduced under powers devolved by the UK Government later this year, is open for consultation starting on 23 September and lasting for eight weeks until 18 November.

This levy would be applicable to the construction of new residential buildings, aligning with similar measures being implemented in England through the UK Building Safety Act. The funds raised would go towards supporting the Scottish Government’s cladding remediation programme.

Finance Secretary Shona Robison expressed, “We are eager to hear from individuals all around Scotland regarding our proposals, which aim to generate funds from developers to protect people residing in buildings with unsafe cladding. Developers share our commitment to ensuring safety and have made significant strides in this regard. This legislation will further bolster these efforts, ensuring developers make a fair contribution towards rectifying building safety defects in Scotland, similar to the requirements in England set by the UK Government.

“In partnership with developers, in accordance with our New Deal for Business and Framework for Tax, we aim to ensure that this levy effectively supports our mission of ensuring people’s safety.”

The consultation follows the revelation that the Scottish Government scheme, initiated in response to the Grenfell Tower tragedy, has yet to complete cladding remediation work on any affected properties. While the pilot cladding remediation programme includes 107 listings, information obtained by Scottish Labour through freedom of information requests indicates that only work on five of these listings has commenced.

Contrastingly, a report by a Holyrood committee last year highlighted that by December 2023 in England, 42% of affected buildings had either started or completed remediation work, encompassing 1,608 properties in total.

Reacting to the situation, Scottish Labour housing spokesperson Mark Griffin stated, “The SNP’s lack of urgency in removing this hazardous cladding from Scottish structures is utterly scandalous. The SNP government cannot take fire safety lightly.”

A spokesperson from the Scottish Government responded, “With the implementation of the Housing (Cladding Remediation) (Scotland) Act 2024 and the Single Building Assessment Technical Specification, we are hastening the pace of delivery.”