Dr. Paul McGowan:

It was deemed important from a safety perspective that people carrying out gas works be competent and insured. That is what the scheme guarantees. The question arises of whether people are operating outside the scheme and we acknowledge that there probably are people outside it. To some extent, one could say it is inevitable and, therefore, ask what are we doing about it. That is why I highlighted the three aspects we pursue.

On the promotion of public awareness, it is key that customers ask for a conformance certificate. If they are aware of the safety risks associated with gas system installation, they will avoid the black market. When we are successful in pursuing prosecutions, we send a clear signal to the market. People cannot connect to the gas network unless they have a conformance certificate proving they have used a registered gas installer. We are not in any way discounting the concerns of the APHCI and continue to discuss the issues arising with it. At the same time, however, we stand over the scheme in terms of what it is trying to achieve. We are constantly engaging with the industry to identify where improvements can be made.