Mr. John Wickham:

In the lead-up to the implementation of the construction products regulation, the Department had intensive engagement with industry and produced information leaflets for distribution among the professional bodies and the stakeholder groups, which would be the economic operators that are affected by the construction products regulations, which would be the manufacturers, importers and distributors. We got good coverage at the time. The rules are very clear under the construction products regulation.

We also actively work with the professionals who are specifying products, the registered architects, building surveyors and engineers who sign off on the materials which are incorporated into the construction works. What we are interested in is that those products are quality and fit for purpose. In terms of the dynamic that exists between the certification of buildings and the placing of products on the market, we have, through our regulatory system, placed a value on the declaration of performance, which is a key output from the construction products regulation. It is the obligation on the manufacturer to declare what a product can and cannot do in terms of common technical language that is readily understood by everyone involved. In targeting the end user with a lot of our seminars and information, we emphasise to them to ask their supply chain for the declaration of performance and make sure that they are prepared for eventualities because it is a declaration of performance which they will rely upon to sign off on building works. It is quite an important legal document.

The notification to stakeholders was issued earlier this year by the EU Commission and we have distributed that information to all within our contact list. We have had several individual engagements with trade associations on getting a better understanding of the impact it would have for their membership. I think the rules, as they are stated, are pretty clear in having business continuity. Those Irish manufacturers that currently engage with UK notified bodies will need to be conscious of making preparations to allow for business continuity should a hard Brexit occur. Equally, the manufacturers that come from the UK who are importing products into Ireland will also have to ensure they have a notified body that is a legal entity within an EU member state.

The NSAI has established a dedicated Brexit unit that is looking at the impacts on the construction stakeholder group, the manufacturers, and seeing where other measures are possible to expand the NSAI's service to accommodate some of the Irish manufacturers that are looking for, essentially, a re-certification. That is something the NSAI will have under review. Under the current scope of accreditation, the NSAI is the only notified body that the Department has designated. As Ms Neary mentioned previously, there is an interest from a cohort of UK notified bodies to enter the Irish market and that will be assessed in due course.