HSE Welcomes Draft Building Safety Bill

THE HEALTH and Safety Executive (HSE) has welcomed the publication of the government’s draft Building Safety Bill, which aim to create the biggest change in building safety for a generation.

The publication of the draft bill, on Monday 20 July, follows the announcement made by housing minister Robert Jenrick in January that HSE would create a new Building Safety Regulator (BSR). It aims to implement reforms to improve building safety following the Grenfell Tower tragedy.

The BSR will oversee the new building safety regime for higher-risk buildings, over 18m or more than six storeys high in England. It will also oversee the safety and performance of buildings as well as promoting the competence of built environment professions.

HSE Chief Executive Sarah Albon said: “HSE is currently working with other parts of government, key regulators and industry to establish how the new legislation can be implemented in a practical way and create a new regime that improves building safety standards and competence across the industry.”

Joint Regulators Group

HSE will also lead the government’s Joint Regulators Group (JRG), which will coordinate local authority and fire & rescue regulators during the transition to the new regulatory regime. It will support the development of close working arrangements between the BSR and local regulators, while continuing to work with early adopters to trial new safety approaches.

The JRG will be chaired by Peter Baker, Director of the Building Safety and Construction Division of HSE. He said: “The BSR will create a new era for building safety, working with wider government, local regulators, industry and residents we want to ensure that a tragedy like Grenfell Tower never happens again.

“Through appropriate use of its enforcement powers under the new regulatory framework, the BSR will ensure that building safety risks are being properly managed and controlled throughout the lifecycle of a building. It will also hold those with legal duties to account for significant failures.”

He added: “In my role as chair of the JRG I will work together with members to ensure that the proposals are both robust and practical.”