Fintan Warfield (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I move amendment No. 8:

"In page 12, to delete lines 15 and 16 and substitute the following:

"(4) The Minister shall appoint the National Building Control Office as the registration body under subsection (2):"."

I raised this issue on Second Stage so the Minister will be aware of it. The construction industry register is currently located on a voluntary basis in the head office of the Construction Industry Federation, CIF. Criteria for appointing the registration body under this Bill is essentially designed so that it can be the CIF. We do not believe, as I said on previous Stages, that it is appropriate for a register of this kind to be located in the main industry lobby group for the construction sector. This is about ensuring there is public confidence in the industry. It makes no sense for this to be located in the head office of the CIF. It is a conflict of interest. We propose an alternative: that it be located within the national building control office, which was created following the issues at Priory Hall. Its job is to try to improve standards in building control across local authorities. It also contributes towards better data and, therefore, it is much better placed to be the registration authority. Given everything we have seen, from mica to pyrite to Priory Hall and flat complexes in Dublin, people have to have confidence. Given there is a lobby group going to do this register, it would be appropriate to amend that to locate it within the national building control office.