Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what data her Department holds on trends in the number of complaints about building safety in non-high-rise properties following developers being permitted to use non-local authority building inspectors.

The Department does not hold specific data on trends in the number of complaints related to private sector building control bodies. Since April 2024, the Building Safety Regulator (BSR) has overseen the performance of building control professionals and bodies, including private Registered Building Control Approvers, under a framework of Operational Standards Rules. The BSR monitors and analyses performance to improve standards across the sector.

In response to the Grenfell Tower Inquiry Report, the Government established the Building Control Independent Panel to consider the future of building control, including the role of commercial interests. The Government has accepted the principles of the Panel’s proposals for reform and agrees that change must be proportionate, carefully sequenced, and built on work already in place. The Government will respond more fully to the Panel’s recommendations in due course.