Emer Higgins (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to discuss this Bill. Building and construction regulation, or the lack thereof, has created major issues for homeowners in the past and, unfortunately, it continues to create problems. We have seen from the families impacted by mica and pyrite that issues with standards of building works and materials can have simply devastating consequences. I see at first hand in my constituency how issues with construction defects or so-called cowboy builders have created massive amounts of stress and turmoil for homeowners, with them often left with no comeback and having to foot big bills for shoddy workmanship. That is without even mentioning the safety concerns.

A member of the public recently wrote to me about the person's home. The person said:

In recent years, due to poor design and workmanship, our management company completed a repair programme for all the properties in my area, 75 balconies, to stop water ingress and rot to the wooden structures of the properties. This cost approximately €6,000 per unit, with some units having to pay for full roof replacement costing over €30,000. Recently it has come to our attention that there are some fire safety issues in one property. While the total remediation costs are not yet available, it is clear that we are looking at more substantial costs. The remedial works are invasive and they may require some residents to move out while works are being done. We have just finished the repair programme to the roof balconies. Our sinking fund is so depleted and now owners are again being asked to contribute and finance repairs due to factors outside of their control, caused by poor workmanship and an industry that is poorly regulated. We simply cannot cope.

These residents are telling me that they simply cannot cope. Many of us take for granted closing the hall door behind us and feeling safe in the structure of our home. Can the Minister imagine feeling unsafe in his home? I do not have to imagine it. I lived the experience of knowing that where I lived was deemed unsafe by fire standards, knowing that this was due to shoddy workmanship and knowing that my landlady had to foot that bill.

This Bill's ambition is to alleviate that fear for people in the future. It will provide for the establishment of the construction industry register and will allow the Government to appoint a body to regulate providers of building works, the construction industry registration body. This will definitively set out the standards and the competencies that are expected of building suppliers. That will be of great use to people when they are seeking to hire a builder to carry out work on their building. It will give people confirmation and comeback so that when building work is not carried out to a safe or acceptable standard, they will have that redress. That is a very important aspect of the Bill. It will also provide a mechanism for complaints against providers to be investigated and adjudicated. That will allow for the imposition of the correct sanctions for those who break the regulations.

The appeals committee which is provided for in the Bill will be crucial, not only to hear and determine appeals but also to impose sanctions. It is important that these standards can be upheld retrospectively. This would ensure that we are not just safeguarding against unsafe or inadequate construction work for the future, but that we are providing a pathway for redress for those previously and currently affected. The current building control regulations require the owner of a proposed building to sign a statutory form assigning a competent builder to undertake the works. However, the regulations do not require that the builder be registered with the CIR. It is currently a voluntary body with approximately 800 construction entities on the register. That register is expected to balloon and increase to at least 5,000 with statutory registration. That is very welcome. Essentially, this becomes a consumer protection issue. Providing that on a statutory footing gives consumers assurance that they are dealing with a competent and compliant provider.

That is a clear commitment that we have all agreed in Housing for All. I welcome the progress this Bill will make in delivering on that commitment because we need firm action to prevent a recurrence of housing defects that were the result of legacy matters and poor construction, workmanship, design and materials.

We cannot put a price on feeling safe in one's own home and knowing that work has been done to the highest standards. I welcome the reassurance and clarity this Bill will provide. I ask the Minister of State to examine the current position for people who have carried out or must carry out fire safety works because they need reassurance and clarity. They must know they will be supported.

Yesterday in this Chamber we spoke about violence against women and all of us across parties and both sides of the Chamber united on that. We spoke about why it is so important that the punishment fits the crime. That is how we get to a culture of zero tolerance and we must have that same zero tolerance attitude when it comes to construction defects. That means there should be appropriate sanctions and we must ensure the punishment fits the crime. I ask the Minister of State to re-examine those sanctions within this Bill. I commend the Minister of State for everything he is doing with this. This regulation will bring huge benefit to homeowners while revamping the construction sector.

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