INDUSTRY UPDATE NEWS
Grenfell shows need for industry competence
T he damning final report of the Grenfell Inquiry has shown a need for competence, but there is still a great deal of work to do, the Federation of Master Builders (FMB) said. Brian Berry, Chief Executive of the FMB, said: “While the nation’s local builders are, for the most part, far removed from work that has been investigated as part of the Grenfell Tower Inquiry, it does not mean that they are precluded from improving industry standards. “Domestic builders do not have minimum competence levels; they do not belong to a protected profession like plumbers or electricians. If the industry and the government are serious about delivering competence, then introducing minimum standards for entry into domestic building work is a must – this is competence from the ground up”. The new government, Berry argued, needs to adopt a more responsible culture in which regulations are
not cut and building safety is not compromised. Key to this shift is the licensing of domestic builders, which Berry said would drive up building standards. “Why should homeowners not share in the safety net implemented after Grenfell?” Berry asks. “Without minimum standards, unregulated or ‘dodgy’ building work will continue, and the industry will not shake off its poor reputation, which is driven by rogue operators plying their trade free from consequence. “However, where the government has tried to regulate domestic builders, through the Building Safety Act, mostly for work involving building control, they have only outlined high-level requirements without any underpinning competence. This has left builders confused and worried about committing to work they feel they may no longer be competent to do. The new government must address this immediately to give the industry clear guidance.”
Prime Minister Keir Starmer
Prime Minister Keir Starmer vowed to ban the firms named and shamed in the Grenfell Inquiry report from winning any future government contracts. The 1,700-page report detailed a decade of negligence from both the government and the private sector in failing to stop the spread of combustible cladding. The Grenfell fire in 2017 killed 72 people, with the cladding being the “principal” cause for the speed at which the fire spread. Full accountability The Prime Minister stressed the need for “full accountability” and promised the government would respond within six months. Starmer said: “This government will write to all companies found by the inquiry to have been part of these horrific failings as the first step to stopping them being awarded government contracts. “There are still buildings today with unsafe cladding – and the speed at which this is being addressed is far, far too slow. “We will take the necessary steps to speed this up. We will also reform the construction products industry that made this fatal cladding so homes are made of safe materials.” Starmer bans Grenfell firms
12
Master Builder
www.fmb.org.uk
Made with FlippingBook - PDF hosting