Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 11 July 2023
413. Deputy John Lahart asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if he will consider creating a statutory oversight body for the construction sector that will investigate claims of negligent practices and-or defective buildings; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34183/23]
View answerIn recognition of the defects and issues that have arisen, a range of building control reforms which focus on ensuring strong and effective regulation in the building control system and of the construction industry and on improving compliance with Building Regulations have been implemented over the last decade. These include:
a. Implementation of the Building Control (Amendment) Regulations 2014. These Regulations empower competence and professionalism in construction projects and establish a chain of responsibility that begins with the owner. With certain limited exceptions, the owner must assign competent persons to design, build, inspect and certify the building works who, in turn, must account for their role through the lodgement of compliance documentation, inspection plans and statutory certificates. The roles and responsibilities of owners, designers, builders, assigned certifiers, etc. during building works are set out in the Code of Practice for Inspecting and Certifying Buildings and Works. The Code of Practice also provides guidance on use of proper materials and the need to check supporting documentation under the Construction Products Regulation (e.g Declaration of Performance) and additional national guidance (e.g. Standard Recommendations produced by National Standards Authority of Ireland).
b. the creation of the National Building Control Management Project and the establishment of the National Building Control & Market Surveillance Office (NBCMSO) to provide oversight, support and direction for the development, standardisation and implementation of Building Control as an effective shared service in the 31 Building Control Authorities.
c. The enactment in July 2022 of the Regulation of Providers of Building Works and Miscellaneous Provisions Act 2022. This Act develops and promotes a culture of competence, good practice and compliance with the Building Regulations in the construction sector. The Act will put the Construction Industry Register Ireland on a statutory footing and aims to benefit consumers and the general public by giving those who engage a registered builder the assurance that they are dealing with a competent and compliant operator. The Act also allows for complaints against registered builders to be made on a number of grounds – in particular an entity providing building services in a category in which they are not registered. It provides for a range of proportionate sanctions to be imposed after investigation. Complaints in relation to building regulations will continue to be dealt with under the Building Control Act. When the register operates on a statutory footing, it’s expected that initially at least 5,000 entities will be required to register.
While the enforcement of Building Control and Market Surveillance of construction products has been strengthened significantly over the last ten years locally and nationally under the Building Control Management Project and leadership of the NBCMSO, it is acknowledged that further strengthening is required. In that context, the Programme for Government and Housing for All commit to establishing a building standards regulator. The purpose of the regulator will be to strengthen the oversight role of the State with the aim of further reducing the risk of building failures and enhancing public confidence in construction-related activity. The objective is to ensure that this regulator has sufficient breadth of scope, effective powers of inspection and enforcement, and an appropriate suite of sanctions.
It is intended that the building standards regulator will be established on a statutory basis (through primary legislation). In this regard, I informed the Government on 18 January of my intention to develop legislative proposals for the establishment of a building standards regulator.
As a first step, a comprehensive desktop study was undertaken by the Housing Agency in collaboration with the Department, which documented the current building control system and construction product enforcement system in Ireland and other countries. It also provides an overview of other relevant regulators and inspectorates in Ireland.
Building on the information contained in this study (completed in March 2023), the Department has commenced dialogue with the County and City Management Association with a view to determining the scope, functions, role and structure of the regulator. It is intend to bring proposals to Government later in 2023.
Other significant pieces of redress and producers’ liability legislation which may apply to construction products are the Sale of Goods Acts and the Sale of Goods and Supply of Services Act 1980; and the Liability for Defective Products Act 1991 which fall under the remit of my colleague the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment.
