Grenfell Tower fire: Angela Rayner cannot put timeline on dangerous cladding removal from Yorkshire high rises

“I’m always straight with people,” she said. “I can’t give you a timeline today, but what I can say is that it is an incredibly slow process at the moment – seven years on – and that’s not acceptable.”

The Yorkshire Post revealed that in July there were still up to five buildings in Sheffield, with the same aluminium composite material cladding that turbocharged the flames on Grenfell, that are yet to start remediation work.

Across Leeds, Bradford, Calderdale and Sheffield less than half of the 18-metre plus high rises with other forms of dangerous cladding have been remediated under the Building Safety Fund.

And work has not started on any of the 32 blocks of flats in Yorkshire and the Humber that have applied for help under the Cladding Safety Scheme.

The CSS was set up in November 2022 to carry out safety work where residents are unable to pay for it themselves and believe someone else, like the developer, is responsible.

Ms Rayner told the BBC there was “no excuse” for building owners who have not taken steps to remove dangerous cladding.

“At the moment, there’s £5 billion that’s available for remediation, so I don’t accept that the money’s not there,” she said.

“And these companies, the people that own these buildings, have financial resources as well. I don’t accept that there is not the money to do this remediation.”

She said there were sometimes “very complex” ownership structures for the buildings.

“Some are owned offshore, and I’m looking at that now and how we can continue to really hold these building owners to account, to make sure that they do the work.

“There’s no excuse to not do this work now.”

The government has written to hundreds of building owners issuing requirements.

Yet in some cases, freeholders have been given years to remove dangerous cladding.

Grey GR, who own the Timblebeck development in Leeds, have been given until November 2026 to finish remedial work.

The Deputy Prime Minister faced questions yesterday about the next steps ministers will take following the end of the inquiry into the 2017 tower block fire.

It found that the devastating blaze had been caused by “decades of failure” by government and the building industry to act on the dangers of flammable materials on high-rise buildings, and every one of the 72 deaths was avoidable.

Ms Rayner, who is also the Housing Secretary, added that the Metropolitan Police and Crown Prosecution Service must act “as quickly as possible” with their investigation into the deaths.

Scotland Yard has said it will need an estimated 12 to 18 months to pore over the report “line by line” before any criminal charges are brought.

The force has previously said a total of 19 companies and organisations were under investigation for potential criminal offences, along with 58 individuals.

Ms Rayner said ministers would respond to the recommendations from the inquiry withing six months.