National House of the Year Awards

Speech notes

Hon Maurice Williamson

Minister for Building and Construction

National House of the Year Awards

SKYCITY Convention Centre, Auckland

Saturday, 14 November 2009

Acknowledgements

Introduction

Thank you to the Registered Master Builders' Federation for inviting me to speak.  It's a pleasure to be here on the 19^th anniversary of the House of the Year and Commercial Project of the Year Awards, New Zealand's premier building industry event.  I am looking forward to presenting some of the awards shortly.

Tonight's event is about recognising excellence, promoting best practice, encouraging new ideas and supporting a strong building sector.  As Minister, my vision is to achieve a prosperous, confident and efficient building industry in New Zealand.  Tonight's finalists are the best builders in our country, and I congratulate them on their achievements.

Importance of the building sector to the New Zealand economy

Building and construction are important to the New Zealand economy.  The industry contributes more than 5% of GDP, and employs 7.5% of New Zealand's workforce.  The total capital expenditure on building and construction is more than $20 billion per annum.   

The building industry is critical to the health of our economy and Government is committed to recognising this.  Work is underway to make your job as builders easier, quicker and more efficient.

Recent building and construction announcements

In August, I made two important announcements:

• one on the licensing of building practitioners; and
• the other on the review of the Building Act 2004.

I'm delighted to say that these initiatives have been widely welcomed by consumers and the industry alike.

They represent Government's commitment to leading a change in the way building work is done in this country, and I believe they will result in higher-quality buildings, a better environment for business, and enhanced consumer protection.

Licensed Building Practitioners' Scheme

The Government has decided that certain kinds of building work that are critical to the integrity of a building will only be able to be done by a licensed building practitioner from March 2012.  I know that the Registered Master Builders' Federation has taken a keen interest in the licensing scheme.

Restricted building work will apply to stand-alone houses and small- to medium-sized apartments and will include:

• foundations and framing, so that the building can withstand vertical and horizontal loads, and
• roofing and cladding, so that the building is weathertight.

This important change to the building control system in New Zealand will contribute to Government's two key goals for the sector: less red tape, and better buildings.

Streamlining

I have also pledged to streamline and improve the current licensing building practitioner scheme.

I want to make the scheme easier to understand, cheaper and less time-consuming for qualified practitioners to apply, and more efficient to run.

I recently consulted on the best way to do this. The consultation paper included proposals for:

• a fast-track, simplified, cheaper process for trade-qualified practitioners
• simplifying the building categories for the Design and Site classes
• removing duplication with other occupational licensing schemes, and
• not proceeding with licensing for people who install or maintain active building services such as lifts, fire and air-conditioning systems.

The consultation closed on 25 September 2009, and submissions are being considered, with a revamped scheme expected to be in place in early 2010.

Builders and other practitioners in the industry will have much to gain from these changes.

Competent builders and trades people with a sound track record will have their skills and experience recognised.  And for people who are formally qualified, the licensing process will be even more straightforward.  The scheme will provide for better buildings and improved consumer confidence.

Building Act review

The industry has told me that we have a stifling building consent system that adds cost and time to many building processes, which can ultimately end up disadvantaging consumers and frustrating builders.

This needs to change.  A review is currently underway to examine the whole range of concerns raised by industry about the Building Act 2004.

Review focus

The Building Act review will identify reforms for reducing costs while preserving the quality of the building control system. 

The review is considering:

• removing building regulation that adds cost but is of little benefit
• streamlining building consent requirements to reflect risk and complexity, including reducing the amount of work requiring a consent
• improving the allocation of risk and liability across parties in the building and construction sector
• providing consumers with more information about their rights and responsibilities, and improving dispute resolution mechanisms
• creating greater incentives for professional performance, including some self-certification of licensed building practitioners' work and requiring fewer inspections
• streamlining administration of building regulation, including options for consenting processes to be carried out by cluster groupings of councils
• how the use of smart technology could improve consenting processes.

‘Quick wins' that do not require legislative change will be implemented immediately, while those requiring legislative change are targeted for implementation in mid-2010.

Subject to Cabinet approval, sector-wide consultation will be carried out next year on more detailed options for regulatory reform, with a view to legislative change by the end of 2011.

National Multiple-Use Approval Service

Recently, I announced a new scheme to improve business efficiencies and ensure cost-savings in the consenting process for volume builders.  Where garages, houses and retirement village units will be replicated several times, the National Multiple-Use Approval Service will assess designs for Building Code compliance and will issue ‘pre-approvals'.  This new service goes live on 1 February 2010.

Closing remarks

I have described some of the measures the Government is taking to boost skills and productivity in the building industry, and to set it on the course for sustained long-term growth.

Challenges will continue to arise, but I am sure they can be successfully tackled through open dialogue between industry and Government, and working together to ensure an innovative, productive industry for building and construction.

Tonight, we celebrate excellence and innovation in residential and commercial building.  So without further ado, it is now my great pleasure to be involved with presenting this year's awards.