Leasehold reform (No. 2)

That this House is deeply concerned by the Government’s significant delays to leasehold reform legislation and the implications for leaseholders who live still in unsafe buildings; regrets that the previous Government failed to protect leaseholders from dangerous cladding or abolish residential leasehold; calls on the Government to improve the fire and safety standards urgently; urges the Government to better protect leaseholders with a statutory right to access to information collected during forensic investigations carried out after a fire; notes that leaseholders make up over 20% of the housing stock in England and that both freeholders and leaseholders often suffer from unregulated estate management companies forcing residents to pay unreasonable service and estate management charges and rogue developers who leave serious defects unresolved; further notes with concern that leaseholders faced an average service charge increase of 11% in 2024 and that service charge increases have left many leaseholders unable to sell; further calls on the Government to urgently abolish residential leasehold for new developments and provide a route to commonhold for all existing leaseholders with management rights to protect them from unregulated charges.