Two-year audit identifies 19 at risk Commonwealth buildings
Flammable cladding similar to what caused the Grenfell Tower tragedy in London has been found in 19 Commonwealth offices blocks here.
National
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The secretive federal government inquiry into building flammable cladding following the Grenfell Tower tragedy in London has now found 19 buildings need to be rectified to be made safe.
But just which buildings they are and where remains unknown with no clarity also on whether occupants know they are operating in a potential fire trap with the government citing a terror target risk if their details were made public.
The Department of Industry began an audit of Commonwealth buildings two years ago following the 2017 Grenfell Tower flats fire in West London which killed 72 people with investigators finding the structure’s external cladding exasperated the fire.
Labor’s shadow industry minister Brendan O’Connor has for months been stonewall on his questioning of the audit but yesterday was finally told there were 19 Commonwealth owned buildings with cladding that needed work.
This was up from the 11, including five defence bases, previously stated during Senate Estimates hearings and also does not include any buildings the Commonwealth leases as opposed to owns.
The British-born Mr O’Connor said Australia could not risk a Grenfell as he accused the Federal Government of shirking the public’s right to know which buildings are at risk and need urgent rectification.
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He said it was not good enough to not know which buildings were at risk and whether occupants had been advised.
“The Morrison Government has always been in denial about the role it needs to play regarding the public safety issue of construction quality and flammable cladding – whether it is on fraudulent phoenix activity, insurance regulation, importation of dangerous cladding, and now the safety of Defence staff,” he told News Corp Australia.
He added: “Australians deserve to feel safe – especially in their own homes and workplaces.”
Responding to Mr O’Connor’s parliamentary questioning, Industry Minister Karen Andrews said 190 government departments and agencies had to review more than 30,000 buildings hence the time taken to come up with a definitive figure.
But she confirmed all portfolios had now completed the task.
“There are 19 Commonwealth owned buildings that have been reported as requiring rectification, in all cases the responsible portfolios have advised that they have processes in train for rectification,” she said.
The five defence bases with flammable cladding buildings were HMAS Penguin in Sydney, HMAS Cairns, RAAF Townsville, Fisherman’s Bend in Melbourne and RAAF Edinburgh in South Australia.