Phil Hogan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I am surprised that Deputy Pringle has taken upon himself to support the Royal Institute of the Architects of Ireland. Every effort has been made to ensure that arrangements have been in place for a successful transition to the new building control arrangements on and from 1 March 2014.

The new on-line Building Control Management System, BCMS, has been developed to provide a common platform for clear and consistent administration of building control matters across the local authority sector. Briefing and guidance on the new system has been provided for local authority staff and representatives of the key construction sector professional bodies and the Construction Industry Federation, CIF, in recent weeks.

The definitive Code of Practice for Inspecting and Certifying Buildings and Works, was circulated to industry stakeholders on 7 February 2014. Standard forms of contracts used for both private and public sector projects fall to be revised to reflect the new regulatory environment. The Government construction contracts committee and the key construction professional bodies both report strong progress in advancing this work within their respective sectors. The Government has established an oversight group to ensure no unavoidable delays will occur in relation to critical public infrastructure projects, at a time when construction activity and employment depends significantly on public sector investment. Briefing and guidance is available within the public and private sectors to deal with contractual challenges and procurement issues that will inevitably arise as change takes place.

The above measures are the key supports necessary to ensure the new regulatory arrangements can work well in practice. Concerns that the new regulations prevent a self-build situation are unfounded, as I have indicated to Deputy Stanley. An owner who intends to self-build will, as before, assume legal responsibility for ensuring that the building or works concerned are compliant and they will be required, as builder, to sign the undertaking by the builder and the certificate of compliance on completion.

As local authorities and industry now move to full implementation of the new regulatory arrangements, my Department will continue to work with all parties to ensure they understand their obligations and the steps necessary to meet them. I do not intend to defer the regulations as the RIAI advocates.

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