OXFORD residents will be made homeless by the government’s refusal to fund the removal of flammable cladding on two city council’s tower blocks, according to a councillor.

The government has so far refused to foot the bill to strip cladding from hundreds of tower blocks around the country after the Grenfell Tower fire, which killed more than 80 people in June.

That is despite the Local Government Association (LGA), which is made up of local authorities around the country, claiming the government had told it in the wake of the tragedy that it would pay to replace it.

Oxford City Council members gave the final go ahead for as much as £1m to be spent replacing flammable cladding on Evenlode and Windrush towers in Blackbird Leys with non-flammable material at a full council meeting on Tuesday. Work is expected to take up to six months.

Councillor John Tanner, who sits on the council’s executive board as a member for a Clean and Green Oxford, said the cost will leave the council struggling to house others on the waiting list.

But he added stripping the tower blocks back was a top priority to ensure residents feel safe: “Let’s get on with the job. I cannot imagine any circumstances when any council would refuse this.”

Council leader Bob Price said the government’s handling over the disaster and its aftermath ‘does not fill you with confidence’.

A Department for Communities and Local Government spokeswoman said last week: “We’ve been clear with councils and housing associations that we expect them to do whatever is necessary to make buildings safe.”