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MPs defeat bid to save leaseholders from huge fire safety bills

Amendments to stop building owners passing on the costs of fixing defects were defeated in a Common vote
Hundreds of thousands of leaseholders living in unsellable and potentially dangerous high-rise homes could be left with fire safety bills of up to £100,000 each after MPs voted against a proposal to protect them from the crippling costs.
Amendments intended to stop building owners passing on the costs of fixing defects were defeated in a Commons vote on Monday evening, after being submitted by the House of Lords. It was backed by Labour, but failed to attract sufficient Tory rebels to pass, and was defeated 322 to 253.
After 72 people were killed in the June 2017 Grenfell Tower fire, safety problems including similar combustible cladding were discovered on thousands of high-rise blocks, leading to bills for private leaseholders estimated by property experts at between £12bn and £20bn. Freehold owners have been holding leaseholders responsible for the payments, leading to standoffs because the bills are often unaffordable.
The government has promised £5bn to replace combustible cladding, but only on buildings over 18 metres in height, and the money does not cover other fire safety defects. That has left leaseholders on shorter blocks with dangerous cladding and people with defective fire doors or missing fire breaks in wall systems with unsellable homes and huge bills.
Sarah Jones, the shadow fire and policing minister, told parliament: “It is taking a heavy toll on people’s mental health and is putting millions of lives on hold.”
She said government opposition to the amendment was a “betrayal of a promise made over 17 times that leaseholders should not be left to foot the bill”.
The protection for leaseholders was originally proposed by Stephen McPartland, a Conservative backbencher, who said that to require them to pay was “morally unacceptable”. He told parliament some residents faced bankruptcy and homelessness. Another Tory rebel, Royston Smith, said: “If this bill becomes law, we will be abandoning hundreds of thousands of innocent people, and I am not going to have that on my conscience.”
But Chris Pincher, the housing minister, said the amendment could trigger legal action by building owners against the government to reclaim costs, while others could “walk away” from their ownership, making the problem worse.
Paul Afshar of the End Our Cladding Scandal campaign said: “Ministers and two prime ministers have promised countless times that leaseholders should not pay for shoddy construction work, corporate malfeasance and botched government interventions. This evening they broke that promise … They failed to listen to common sense and the moral arguments. We are disappointed – and we are angry.”
People affected by the vote include Julie Frasier, 58, who bought a two-bed flat in the Decks complex in Runcorn for £75,000. Her block is clad in combustible panels, but because her building is under 18m tall, the replacement costs will not be covered. Inspections also revealed missing firebreaks, flammable pipe insulation and poorly fitted fire doors, which are not covered by the fund.
“The figures that have been thrown around are anything between £30,000 and £40,000 per leaseholder,” she said. “It’s dreadful. I don’t have another £40k to throw at the building. I may well have to go bankrupt. It is incredibly worrying. Financially, I will just be crushed.”
The insurance premium of the building rose last year from £33,000 to £504,000. The builder, Taylor Wimpey, has announced a £125m fund to replace cladding, but it no longer owns the freehold, making it unclear whether residents will benefit.
There are about 700,000 private leasehold flats in England over 11 metres in height that require safety certification before the flats can be sold, according to the government’s estimates. Only a minority of these are covered by the government’s £5bn fund.
Lilli Houghton, 26, an accountant who bought her two-bedroom property in Leeds in 2018, said she cannot sell due to fire safety faults and is considering putting her planned wedding on hold as a result. The building is wrapped in combustible cladding, which is going to cost £8m to repair, and there are also missing firebreaks in the walls and timber balconies. The insurance has risen from £57,000 a year to £254,000. The cladding costs should be covered by government grants, but the other faults will not be.
“We need comfort this nightmare will be over,” she said. “At the moment it depends on every leaseholder being able to foot the bill for thousands of pounds. It is a hard thing to know I am stuck here for the foreseeable future.”
Poppy, a primary school teacher who lives in a shared-ownership flat in a south London development affected by fire safety problems, said: “The whole thing is a mess. It’s incredibly anxiety-inducing, especially when you have three such young children. The thought of being made bankrupt at the age of 34 makes me feel sick.”
source: Robert Booth
Levant
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BENEFIT AGM approves 10%...
- March 27, 2025
BENEFIT, the Kingdom’s innovator and leading company in Fintech and electronic financial transactions service, held its Annual General Meeting (AGM) at the company’s headquarters in the Seef District.
During the meeting, shareholders approved all items listed on the agenda, including the ratification of the minutes of the previous AGM held on 26 March 2024. The session reviewed and approved the Board’s Annual Report on the company’s activities and financial performance for the fiscal year ended 31 December 2024, and the shareholders expressed their satisfaction with the company’s operational and financial results during the reporting period.
The meeting also reviewed the Independent External Auditor’s Report on the company’s consolidated financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2024. Subsequently, the shareholders approved the audited financial statements for the fiscal year. Based on the Board’s recommendation, the shareholders approved the distribution of a cash dividend equivalent to 10% of the paid-up share capital.
Furthermore, the shareholders endorsed the allocation of a total amount of BD 172,500 as remuneration to the members of the Board for the year ended 31 December 2024, subject to prior clearance by related authorities.
The extension of the current composition of the Board was approved, which includes ten members and one CBB observer, for a further six-month term, expiring in September 2025, pending no objection from the CBB.
The meeting reviewed and approved the Corporate Governance Report for 2024, which affirmed the company’s full compliance with the corporate governance directives issued by the CBB and other applicable regulatory frameworks. The AGM absolved the Board Members of liability for any of their actions during the year ending on 31st December 2024, in accordance with the Commercial Companies Law.
In alignment with regulatory requirements, the session approved the reappointment of Ernst & Young (EY) as the company’s External Auditors for the fiscal year 2025, covering both the parent company and its subsidiaries—Sinnad and Bahrain FinTech Bay. The Board was authorised to determine the external auditors’ professional fees, subject to approval from the CBB, and the meeting concluded with a discussion of any additional issues as per Article (207) of the Commercial Companies Law.
Speaking on the company’s performance, Mr. Mohamed Al Bastaki, Chairman BENEFIT , stated: “In terms of the financial results for 2024, I am pleased to say that the year gone by has also been proved to be a success in delivering tangible results. Growth rate for 2024 was 19 per cent. Revenue for the year was BD 17 M (US$ 45.3 Million) and net profit was 2 Million ($ 5.3 Million).
Mr. Al Bastaki also announced that the Board had formally adopted a new three-year strategic roadmap to commence in 2025. The strategy encompasses a phased international expansion, optimisation of internal operations, enhanced revenue diversification, long-term sustainability initiatives, and the advancement of innovation and digital transformation initiatives across all service lines.
“I extend my sincere appreciation to the CBB for its continued support of BENEFIT and its pivotal role in fostering a stable and progressive regulatory environment for the Kingdom’s banking and financial sector—an environment that has significantly reinforced Bahrain’s standing as a leading financial hub in the region,” said Mr. Al Bastaki. “I would also like to thank our partner banks and valued customers for their trust, and our shareholders for their ongoing encouragement. The achievements of 2024 set a strong precedent, and I am confident they will serve as a foundation for yet another successful and impactful year ahead.”
Chief Executive of BENEFIT; Mr. Abdulwahed AlJanahi commented, “The year 2024 represented another pivotal chapter in BENEFIT ’s evolution. We achieved substantial progress in advancing our digital strategy across multiple sectors, while reinforcing our long-term commitment to the development of Bahrain’s financial services and payments landscape. Throughout the year, we remained firmly aligned with our objective of delivering measurable value to our shareholders, strategic partners, and customers. At the same time, we continued to play an active role in enabling Bahrain’s digital economy by introducing innovative solutions and service enhancements that directly address market needs and future opportunities.”
Mr. AlJanahi affirmed that BENEFIT has successfully developed a robust and well-integrated payment network that connects individuals and businesses across Bahrain, accelerating the adoption of emerging technologies in the banking and financial services sector and reinforcing Bahrain’s position as a growing fintech hub, and added, “Our achievements of the past year reflect a long-term vision to establish a resilient electronic payment infrastructure that supports the Kingdom’s digital economy. Key developments in 2024 included the implementation of central authentication for open banking via BENEFIT Pay”
Mr. AlJanahi concluded by thanking the Board for its strategic direction, the company’s staff for their continued dedication, and the Central Bank of Bahrain, member banks, and shareholders for their valuable partnership and confidence in the company’s long-term vision.
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