Ministers have outlined further details on how the government intends to make developers and manufacturers in the housing industry in England shoulder the costs of replacing dangerous cladding in an effort to protect leaseholders. The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities said under the plans developers and manufacturers could in effect be blocked from the housing market if they did not help fix cladding safety issues. It said the changes would put into law a commitment to protect leaseholders living in medium- or high-rise buildings from having to pay anything for the removal of unsafe cladding. The government said that if the changes became law it would hugely reduce invoices sent to leaseholders for taking down cladding, which in some cases have exceeded £100,000. Outlining the plans on Monday, the government said it would go further to protect leaseholders by limiting how much they can be asked to pay for non-cladding costs, such as charges for “waking watches” to patrol sites – with some building owners and developers expected to pick up the bill. The proposed changes, to be introduced through amendments to the building safety bill making its way through parliament, would also allow building owners and landlords to take legal action against manufacturers who used defective products on a home that had since been found unfit for habitation, the government said, adding the power would stretch back 30 years and allow recovery where costs have already been paid out. In an effort to ensure that manufacturers found guilty of misconduct are also charged to fix the problems they cause, the government said cost contribution orders would be able to be placed on manufacturers who have been successfully prosecuted under construction products regulations, requiring them to contribute financially to buildings requiring remediation. The government said the proposed changes to the bill would also allow it to apply a proposed building safety levy – paid by developers applying for building control approval for higher-risk residential buildings in England – to more developments. Ministers hope they will not have to use the powers and want responsible developers and manufacturers to operate freely. The courts would also be given fresh powers to stop developers using shell companies that make it difficult to trace or identify who they are run by and so avoid responsibility, the government said. Discussions with industry leaders on the issue of dangerous cladding are ongoing, the government said, but added that progress was being made. The levelling up secretary, Michael Gove, said: “It is time to bring this scandal to an end, protect leaseholders and see the industry work together to deliver a solution. “These measures will stop building owners passing all costs on to leaseholders and make sure any repairs are proportionate and necessary for their safety. All industry must play a part instead of continuing to profit whilst hard-working families struggle. “We cannot allow those who do not take building safety seriously to build homes in the future, and for those not willing to play their part they must face consequences.” Under the plans to reduce non-cladding costs for leaseholders, the government said developers that still owned a building over 11 metres that they had built or refurbished – or landlords linked to an original developer – would be required to pay in full to fix historical building safety issues in their property. Building owners who were not linked to the developer but could afford to pay in full could also be required to put up the money, the government said. A cap on leaseholder costs would then be in place for what the government described as the small number of cases where building owners did not have the resources to pay. It said the cap would be set at similar levels to what is known as Florrie’s Law, which applies to some repairs to social housing – £10,000 for homes outside London and £15,000 for homes in the capital. The government said this would limit how much leaseholders could be asked to pay for non-cladding costs, including waking watch charges. Any costs paid out by leaseholders over the past five years would count towards the cap, which would protect leaseholders from paying any more, the government said, but added it would carry out further consultation before finalising the details. The amendments to the bill are due to be debated in the House of Lords next week.