Building Safety Bill
Baroness Pitkeathley ExcerptsThursday 24th February 2022
(4 years, 2 months ago)
Grand CommitteeRead Full debate Building Safety Act 2022 View all Building Safety Act 2022 Debates Read Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts Amendment Paper: HL Bill 98-III Third marshalled list for Grand Committee - (24 Feb 2022)
Baroness Pinnock (LD)
My Lords, in his response just now the Minister talked about raising the competence of the construction industry and improving the quality of the built environment. This set of amendments, in my name and that of my noble friend Lord Stunell, does precisely that. The focus is on improving consideration of the independence, qualifications and training of those with the critical responsibility of certifying that construction is in compliance with both building regulations and the approved plans. You would think that concentrating on this element of reform of a failed system would be given importance but, unfortunately, in the clauses we have in the Bill it has not been given the prominence it deserves, which has resulted in the amendments I am speaking to now.
Amendment 16 seeks to finally end the changes made by the Building Act 1984 and the approved inspectors regulations. This Act established approved inspectors. Prior to the 1984 Act, all building inspectors were local authority employees. Of course, there were failings with that system; I am not here to say that having all building inspectors under the aegis of the local authority was perfect—it was not. What was introduced—although with good intention, I am sure—has developed into what can be an unhealthily cosy relationship between constructor and inspector. It permits development companies to appoint their own approved inspector, who has to notify the local authority initially and then submit a certification to the local authority when the building works are completed.
The removal of dangerous cladding has in some cases exposed serious defects in construction. Of course, these were because constructors failed to comply with building regulations and the approved plans. Nevertheless, building inspectors had certified these buildings as compliant when they were not. This Bill is the opportunity to make detailed changes to ensure that this situation, in which buildings are signed off as compliant when they are not, does not happen again.
The dual system of building inspectors that currently exists is a key issue. There is a lack of accountability for the decisions made by inspectors. This lack of direct accountability is the very issue that runs through the Hackitt report. At the moment, even if the local authority receives reports of problems associated with a construction site, local authority building inspectors are forbidden by law from investigating and providing an independent check. The simple fact that developers contract their own building inspectors provides a culture in which precise and exact compliance can be ignored.
Change is essential if this Bill is to achieve what it states are the aims, which we are all here to support—better building safety. The Minister has often talked about the tools in his toolbox. I want him to tell me that he will use one of the tools he constantly refers to: recovering the certification documents for the buildings where there have been breaches of building regulations at the time of construction. If he does, we will find out which building inspectors, or the companies to which they belong, have signed off as compliant buildings which painfully obviously were not. Building inspection companies have a liability in this building safety crisis, and they need to be held accountable as well as all the other elements of the construction business we are referring to.
Then there needs to be a radical change to the accountability of building inspectors, both public and private. Private inspections can no longer expect to be free of public oversight, and it will be helpful to hear from the Minister how the accountability of the building inspection regime is expected to operate and how effective it will be.
So, I have covered the duality of the building inspection control system as it currently is and how I hope it will be improved. The other amendments in my name and that of my noble friend Lord Stunell seek to have on the face of the Bill agreed and standard qualifications with consequent and regular compulsory training to ensure that all inspectors have knowledge of new building materials and how these operate in connection with other construction elements. Again, this issue of the relationship of materials in construction and retaining the integrity of the building has been cruelly exposed by the Grenfell tragedy.
Finally, building safety absolutely depends on a highly skilled workforce. Over the years, various Governments have reduced resources to organisations that are able to train and improve the skills of the construction workforce. I will give just one example: further education colleges have had funding slashed and, consequently, courses closed down. This is a short- term approach, so my Amendment 136 will require the Government of the day to publish regular assessments of the current state of the construction industry workforce in order that the aims of the Building Safety Bill can be achieved. With those comments, I beg to move Amendment 15A.
The Deputy Chairman of Committees (Baroness Pitkeathley) (Lab)
My Lords, the noble Baroness, Lady Brinton, is taking part remotely, so I invite her to speak now.
Baroness Brinton (LD) [V]
My Lords, I declare my interests as a vice-chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Fire Safety and Rescue Group and a vice-president of the Local Government Association. I support all the amendments in this group in the names of my noble friends Lady Pinnock and Lord Stunell.
In his response to the previous group and to some groups on the first day of Committee, the Minister rightly said how shocking some of the revelations have been to him, to us and to many others as more systemic failures have been uncovered, and how far too many people were able to refuse to take responsibility for their role in the problems.
Along with other parliamentarians, I heard Dame Judith Hackitt speaking on a number of occasions during and after her review, and I have also read her Independent Review of Building Regulations and Fire Safety—both the interim and the final reports. Her foreword to the final report published in 2018, which she describes as a personal view, is extremely powerful as a summary to the cultural and regulatory structures in the built environment sector and explains exactly why the amendments in this group are so necessary.
The Deputy Chairman of Committees (Baroness Pitkeathley) (Lab)
My Lords, we will also hear from the noble Baroness, Lady Harris of Richmond.
Baroness Harris of Richmond (LD) [V]
My Lords, I will be brief and I, too, wish to speak to the amendments in the names of my noble friends Lady Pinnock and Lord Stunell. I strongly support them.
At Second Reading, I commented on the large number of people who are going to be accountable for the safety of buildings when the new regime comes into force. My main concern was around the person described as the “principal accountable person” because I felt that that person had just about everything to do with the safety of buildings and that that responsibility would rest on that person’s shoulders. I was interested in the comments of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors and the Chartered Institute of Building, which stated that the industry did not yet have qualified individuals who could undertake such incredibly important and probably statutory duties that the position would necessitate. Perhaps I may therefore ask the Minister what the Government are going to do to help the industry find those people and how they propose to go about training them with the necessary skills that will be required.
Queen’s Speech
Baroness Pitkeathley Excerpts(4 years, 11 months ago)
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Baroness Pitkeathley (Lab) [V]
My Lords, the Public Services Committee on which I sit, so ably chaired by my noble friend Lady Armstrong, published its first report, A Critical Juncture for Public Services: Lessons from Covid-19, in the autumn of last year. That juncture was about the importance of recognising the effects of the pandemic on communities as well as on public services. I will focus on two parts of those communities: the charity sector and unpaid carers.
Since the beginning of the pandemic, charities have faced a double whammy, with a huge increase in demand and a vast drop-off in their income, as charity shops, street collections and fundraising events stopped overnight and led to reduced donations by the public. On the plus side, there were huge innovations. Things which would have taken months were organised overnight and rigid rules became relaxed. Process was replaced by greater trust and collaboration. The intimate knowledge that voluntary organisations have of their clients and users suddenly became a thing of value, and charities report being consulted by local public services about the best way to provide those services. This acknowledgment of the special skills, knowledge and experience of local charities must not be allowed to retreat and slip back into the old meaning of consultation with the local voluntary sector. All too often that has meant post hoc consultation, telling the sector what it is to do once policies have been decided, instead of very early involvement. If the failure of track and trace means anything, it is surely that you must rely on local networks and local knowledge, rather than a top-down approach.
Across the United Kingdom, local community organisations, often working closely with local authorities and primary care providers, have recruited volunteers to support those who are vulnerable by organising food banks and helping in vaccination centres. This volunteering response to the pandemic has the potential to create a legacy that will make civil society stronger. Local authorities in the charitable sector want these good experiences to inform their relationships going forward, but this will need support by local authorities, which are so cash-strapped that many can fund only the very highest level of need and are unable to fund the vital preventive work and early warning systems at which charities are so good. Voluntary organisations are very good value, but they are not cost-free. They need support so that the public duty ethic can flourish, as we have seen it do during this last year.
When it comes to public duty, there is no better example than that of unpaid carers. Until the Government set out concrete measures for social care reform, the reality for millions of families is that they have no choice but to take on more and more care for their older or disabled relatives, costing them their livelihoods and relationships, and at the expense of their own physical and mental health. Unpaid carers could not be clearer that they are worn out and overwhelmed; 81% have been providing more care for relatives during the pandemic and 64% have been unable to take any breaks at all for more than a year. A huge majority have seen their loved ones’ health deteriorate.
Without the United Kingdom’s millions of unpaid carers, our health and social care systems would have collapsed in the last year. While the Government have committed to social care reform proposals being brought forward, we have been hearing this for far too long and further delays cannot be tolerated. We need to see detailed plans for reform which ensure that unpaid carers get the practical and financial support that they need to care.
The NHS White Paper failed to mention unpaid carers at all. Support for them must be a core part of the health Bill which we will be scrutinising over the next year. We must see a duty on the NHS to have regard to unpaid carers, to promote their health and well-being, and to ensure that they are identified, supported, and included across the NHS and social care. That is a goal to which everyone should be committed. Social care can work only if unpaid carers are visible, recognised and counted.
Finally, I remind the Minister that we are still waiting for the Government’s response to the consultation on carers’ leave and need to see, as soon as possible, concrete plans about how this will be taken forward.
Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (England) (Amendment) (No. 2) Order 2020
Baroness Pitkeathley Excerpts(5 years, 6 months ago)
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The Minister of State, Home Office and Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (Lord Greenhalgh) (Con)
My Lords, I draw attention to my relevant commercial and residential property interests as set out in the register. We have had an interesting and wide-ranging debate and I thank the noble Lord, Lord German, for tabling the motion, and the Secondary Legislation Scrutiny Committee for its report drawing the statutory instruments to the House’s attention. I also thank noble Lords on all sides of the House for their contributions.
The noble Baronesses, Lady Thornhill and Lady Bakewell of Hardington Mandeville, raised the Planning for the Future White Paper. We published it in August to set out our proposals for planning reform, and it recognises that the current planning system is complex and slow. I assure my noble friend Lord Herbert that there is absolutely no desire to build on England’s green and pleasant land: the focus must be on brownfield site development.
A number of noble Lords, including the noble Lords, Lord German, Lord Kennedy of Southwark and Lord Greaves, and the noble Baronesses, Lady Jones of Moulsecoomb and Lady Thornhill, raised important process issues. The statutory instruments being considered today are made under Section 59 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990. That primary legislation enables the Secretary of State, through secondary legislation, to make a development order. Therefore, these statutory instruments were laid before Parliament under the negative resolution procedure, as is normal for all new permitted development rights.
The noble Baroness, Lady Wheatcroft, pointed out the positive impacts and benefits. Indeed, these measures form a package to support our economic response to coronavirus. They support the delivery of much-needed new homes through a simpler planning system and help businesses to continue to operate safely and respond quickly to changes in how communities use their high streets. The noble Lords, Lord Kennedy of Southwark and Lord Crisp, the noble Baroness, Lady Bakewell, and my noble friend Lord Herbert all raised the issue of quality design and space. To ensure that the new homes delivered under permitted development rights are quality homes, we have made it a requirement that natural light be provided in all habitable rooms of new homes delivered under such rights. We announced in the other place on 30 September that we will lay regulations to require all new homes delivered through permitted development rights to meet the nationally described space standards. To answer the noble Lord, Lord Crisp, these will be introduced at the earliest opportunity.
The noble Lord, Lord Greaves, raised the issue that development can have a negative impact on neighbours and that this may occur during the construction of additional homes by building upwards. To ensure that this is considered before works commence, the developer has to prepare a report setting out the proposed hours of operation and how it intends to minimise any adverse impact of noise, dust, vibration and traffic movements during the building works on occupiers of the building and neighbouring premises. The local authority will consider whether the details set out in the construction management plan are appropriate. Where it is agreed that the developer is in breach of the plan, the local authority can take enforcement action.
The noble Lord, Lord Kennedy of Southwark, and the noble Lord, Lord Sikka, in his excellent maiden speech, raised the issue of affordable housing. Permitted development rights do not require affordable housing provision, which is predominantly delivered as part of the local planning authority’s housing programme. Local planning authorities are required to build for their housing needs, including for affordable housing provision. Permitted development rights, including the new rights for upwards extensions and demolition and rebuild, create new homes that support our ambition to increase housing delivery. They provide additional homes for sale or rent which may otherwise not have been developed. They are, to coin a phrase, “a Brucie bonus”. The new permitted development rights for upward extensions could be used by registered providers or local authorities on their blocks of flats or houses to create new affordable homes or additional living space for their tenants.
I congratulate my noble friend Lord Lancaster on an outstanding maiden speech. He made pointed reference to his dad, “the Master Blaster Pastor”, and I am delighted that he joins us in the House. I can confirm to him that the new permitted development rights do not allow the creation of houses in multiple occupation: the rights only allow single-dwelling houses, C3 use class, to build additional storeys, to extend a home or create new homes. An application for planning permission would be required if an owner wished to change such an extended home or a new flat into either a small house in multiple occupation or a large one for more than six people not living as a family. I hope that reassures my noble friend.
The noble Baronesses, Lady Uddin and Lady Bakewell of Hardington Mandeville, raised the issue of a contribution by developers. Where new dwellings or additional floorspace are created through the rights, and a local authority has a charging schedule in place, a community infrastructure levy may be payable. We have consulted in the planning White Paper on the principle of introducing an infrastructure levy on permitted development schemes going forward. To answer the noble Baroness, Lady Thornhill, we continue to keep all rights under review in the cumulative impact assessment.
The noble Lord, Lord German, and the noble Baroness, Lady Young of Old Scone, mentioned the reduced impact of community engagement as a result of these permitted development rights. The permitted development rights for building upwards and demolition and rebuild are subject to prior approval by the local planning authority. This allows the consideration of key planning matters. I reassure the noble Baroness, Lady Jones of Moulsecoomb, and the noble Lord, Lord Greaves, that among other matters, it can consider the external appearance of the building and the impact of the development on the amenity of the existing building and neighbouring premises, which includes overlooking, privacy and loss of light. The local authority is required put up a site notice and serve notice on all neighbours and occupiers. As with an application for planning permission, it must allow 21 days for comment on the proposals. Objections can be made on the matters for prior approval set out in the right, and the local authority is required to take into account any representations made to it as a result of any consultation when making its decision.
In answer to a specific point raised by my noble friend Lady Wheatcroft, the cap on height is to ensure that the maximum number of floors are created and to prevent the creation of one larger penthouse where two storeys of new homes could be created. This is all about the delivery of important, much-needed new housing. We must build, build, build, for the sake of our children and our children’s children. Delivering new homes and supporting our high streets and town centres is a key priority for this Government. These regulations are an important tool to help drive up housing delivery by simplifying and speeding up the planning system. They will also help town centre uses adapt to changing market demands, while providing protections for important uses.
The Deputy Speaker (Baroness Pitkeathley) (Lab)
I have received no requests to speak after the Minister, so I call the noble Lord, Lord German.
Covid-19: Local Government Finance
Baroness Pitkeathley Excerpts(5 years, 10 months ago)
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Lord Greenhalgh
Adult social care is a considerable part of local authority financing—approximately one-third for most councils. It is worth noting that around 40% of the funding provided so far to meet demand pressures has gone to adult social care, and as we have made the commitment to support those demand pressures through the pandemic, that continues to be a feature of the money that is being provided to local authorities. Whether further funding is required is being kept under review.
Baroness Pitkeathley (Lab) [V]
Is the Minister aware of the effect that local authority funding problems have had on the voluntary and charitable organisations which provide many services to individuals and communities? They have lost both grant funding from and contracts with local authorities and many are now under threat of closure. How do the Government intend to ensure that these vital services are safeguarded? I declare an interest as president of the NCVO.
Lord Greenhalgh
The commitment to the local voluntary sector has been covered by the large grant that has been made available by the DCMS. We recognise the important part that local government plays in providing funding to the third sector. That will continue to be made possible because of the support that we are providing both in income support and to meet demand pressures. The third pillar, which is the loss in tax revenue, has been covered in part as well.
Covid-19: Housing
Baroness Pitkeathley Excerpts(5 years, 11 months ago)
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Lord Greenhalgh
My noble friend is right that there should always be harmony where there is disharmony, and I will look into the specific issues regarding Section 106 payments between district councils and county councils. Many developers may have their own financial pressures but I know that many local authorities are being sensible about, and sensitive to, that and are ensuring that there is enough time for these Section 106 contributions to be made in the first place.
The Deputy Speaker (Baroness Pitkeathley) (Lab)
My Lords, the time allotted for the Statement is now up. The day’s Virtual Proceedings are now complete and are adjourned.