The government has ordered a radical review of our building regulations. The DCLG’s delayed response to the Harman review is seen by some as an attempt to get construction in the UK moving gain. By reducing national regulation and removing local authority powers to add extra demands building will be cheaper and more will get built….that’s the idea.

The review will be completed by early 2013 and is to concentrate on housing; virtually all elements of our building regulations will be scrutinised….structural safety, fire safety, electrical safety, DDA and perhaps most controversially conservation of fuel and power.

It is difficult to see how the review will help construction in the short term – if anything it will create uncertainty and confusion and potentially delay the recovery.

De-regulation will be a disaster for construction (look at what it did to the finance industry), strong leadership and tough targets set by government will drive R&D, innovation and new skills that are surely needed if our industry is to move forward.

Guardian article; click here

UKGBC comment; click here