1. What discussions has the First Minister had with the UK Government and councils regarding the impact on Welsh residents of the UK Building Safety Act 2022? OQ58004

Llywydd, I thank the Member for that question. Ministers continue to engage directly with the UK Government and others to create a robust building safety regime for Wales. That includes deployment of aspects of the UK Building Safety Act. Those discussions continued at ministerial level last week.

Diolch, Brif Weinidog. A resident from the Spillers and Bakers apartment just up the road asked me to raise this question today. There, many leaseholders have been served with a section 20 notice. They face losing their homes due to costly regulation failures in the past. When will they receive the practical support that they need to bring this nightmare to an end? Diolch yn fawr. 

Well, Llywydd, leasehold protections were taken in the UK Building Safety Act. I have gently to point out to the Member that he, of course, voted against the legislative consent motion that gave those powers to Wales to be able to protect leaseholders. It's not an unfair point to make, to ask for powers to be used when you've opposed taking the powers in the first place. 

The Welsh Government's reform programme continues. The Welsh building safety fund, with its £375 million set aside over three years—far more per head of the population than is the case across our border—had, as Members will know, 248 expressions of interest. Digital surveys have now been carried out on all the buildings for which expressions of interest were received. A 100 of those buildings are identified as requiring further, more intrusive surveys, and they will be completed this summer, so that money can then flow to the people whose buildings need that remediation. 

As to the leaseholder support scheme, the final details of that are being drawn up, and applications from leaseholders able to draw on that particular fund being made available from the Welsh Government will be able to make those applications before the end of this term. 

On 29 March, the Minister for Climate Change stated, and I quote:

'Once the Building Safety Bill receives royal assent the task will be to bring forward the necessary regulations'. 

Well, last month, the Bill received Royal Assent, so I'm sure that you as First Minister are as eager as we are to see these regulations laid as quickly as possible. However, we also want justice for residents who continue to be trapped in what have been described as 'tinderboxes'. Now, thanks to the Rt Hon Michael Gove MP, major home builders, accounting for half of new homes, have pledged to fix all unsafe tall buildings that they have had a role in developing. Here in Wales, residents living in homes built by Redrow and other developers are in despair that whilst the UK Government have secured a commitment from the developers in England, you have not yet done so for Wales. So, First Minister, at what point do you start to see that there is an absolute immediate need for you to be far more strong and robust in protecting these very vulnerable tenants? Thank you. 

Llywydd, the Member is right that there is a programme of secondary legislation that will need to flow from the powers that have come to Wales as a result of the UK Act. We believe that 17 separate pieces of legislation will be needed to implement those powers. There'll be related guidance required for each of those pieces of legislation. The first major piece will be brought forward this summer. It will deal with the regulation of building control inspectors and private sector building control approvers. It's a joint piece of work with the UK Government, so the timing of it depends upon final conclusion of discussions with them. But we believe that we will be in a position to start that flow of a major programme of secondary legislation in front of the Senedd with that aspect before the end of this summer.