A Labour MP has accused the government of not taking tough action against owners of residential towers fitted with unsafe ACM cladding nearly two years after the Grenfell fire in which 72 residents died.

In a House of Commons debate Rushanara Ali, the MP for Bethnal Green & Bow in east London, said while the government was safeguarding social sector buildings it was doing little to reassure those living in more than 200 privately-owned high-rise residential towers with ACM cladding.

Ali said the situation was “causing anxiety, fear and insecurity” for leaseholders who were faced with paying both for the removal of unsafe cladding and interim measures such as temporary fire wardens.