BANKS AND INSURERS MOVE ON FLAMMABLE CLADDING

Labor welcomes reports that Westpac has today acknowledged fears over the use of combustible cladding throughout many of its building investments around the country.

This follows reports last week of insurance agencies warning property owners they may not be covered if their buildings contain non-compliant cladding.

Public safety should not be left to private enterprise or individuals. The Liberals must now act to restore public accountability for public safety in the building industry.  

The Senate Economic References Committee  last week handed down its interim report into combustible cladding and recommended that the government immediately ban the sale, use and importation of combustible polyethylene cladding.

It’s time to end the blame game between builders, insurers, financiers and governments.

Labor notes that Westpac is acting in good faith; however, the National Construction Code is totally inadequate.

Ensuring that buildings comply with the National Construction Code is one thing, but there are so many loopholes within the code that can be exploited means public safety cannot be guaranteed.

In the interest of public safety, the Turnbull Government must heed Labor’s calls to ban this deadly product to ensure we don’t have another situation like the 2014 Lacrosse fire or indeed even worse, our own Grenfell.

Australians deserve to feel safe, especially in their own homes and it’s high time the Turnbull Government fixed this mess.