John Paul Phelan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank Senator Conway for raising this issue, which I am taking on behalf of the Minister, Deputy Eoghan Murphy.

At the outset, I wish to acknowledge the distressing and stressful circumstances the owners and residents of buildings must face where building defects emerge. However, in general, building defects are matters for resolution between the contracting parties involved, the homeowner, the builder, the developer and-or their respective insurers, structural guarantee or warranty scheme.

It is important to note that while the Department has overall responsibility for establishing and maintaining an effective regulatory framework for building standards and building control, it has no general statutory role in resolving defects in privately owned buildings, including dwellings, nor does it have a budget for such matters. In this regard, it is incumbent on the parties responsible for poor workmanship and-or the supply of defective materials to face up to their responsibilities and take appropriate action to provide remedies for the affected homeowners.

The issue of legal redress for homeowners in respect of property transactions is a complex matter, with potential implications for the entire legal system as well as for the insurance industry. In this context, in February 2018, the Department wrote to the Law Reform Commission and also corresponded with those involved in the review of the administration of civil justice in Ireland requesting that they consider the issue of effective and accessible legal remedies for homeowners who discover defects in their homes.

Under the Building Control Acts 1990 to 2014, primary responsibility for compliance of works with the requirements of the building regulations, including Part B on fire safety, rests with the owners, designers and builders of buildings. Enforcement of the building regulations is a matter for the 31 local building control authorities, which have extensive powers of inspection and enforcement under the Acts and which are independent in the use of their statutory powers.

In August 2017, the Department published a framework for enhancing fire safety in dwellings where concerns arise.The framework is intended to be used as a guide by the owners and occupants of dwellings where fire safety deficiencies have been identified or are a cause for concern. The framework will also be of assistance to professional advisers, both in developing strategies to improve fire safety and in developing strategies to enable continued occupation in advance of undertaking necessary works to ensure compliance with the relevant building regulations. In response to the many building failures that have emerged in the past decade, the Department introduced the Building Control (Amendment) Regulations to the 2014 Act which require greater accountability on the compliance with building regulations in the form of statutory certification of design and construction by registered construction professionals and builders, lodgement of compliance documentation, mandatory inspections during construction and validation and registration of certificates. A certificate of compliance on completion is jointly signed by the builder and the assigned certifier. This must be accompanied by plans and documentation to show how the constructed building complies with the building regulations and also the inspection plan as implemented. Parallel with the 2014 regulations, a project is in place in the Local Government Management Agency to improve the effectiveness of the building control system. A number of enhancements have been delivered to date and others are in progress. Ultimately this work will be embedded in a centralised structure for the governance and oversight of building control as a shared service in a lead local authority. Last year the Government approved the draft heads of a Bill to place the Construction Industry Register Ireland on a statutory footing and the Bill was referred to the Joint Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government for pre-legislative scrutiny. The committee's report was received on 14 December 2017 and the Department is considering its recommendations, with a view to progressing the drafting as soon as possible. Once it is enacted, the Bill will provide consumers who engage a registered builder with the assurance that they are dealing with a competent and compliant operator and will complement the reforms which have been made through the Building Control (Amendment) Regulations and contribute to the development of an enhanced culture of competence and compliance in the construction sector.