The Building Safety Bill has now received Royal Assent as of 28 April and becomes the Building Safety Act 2022.
Lord Greenhalgh, minister for building safety and fire, announced the news on Twitter on 27 April.
This act was created with the intention of increasing the safety of residential buildings in the UK following the 2017 Grenfell Tower disaster. It will also enable further secondary legislation to be published on matters such as safety critical standards and conformity marking. The GAI will continue to update members on any implications on this which relate to our sector as these arise.
It is almost a year since the Bill received its first reading in the House of Commons, in July 2021.
The government introduced the Bill in response to the Grenfell Tower disaster and Dame Judith Hackitt’s subsequent Independent Review of Building Regulations and Fire Safety.
It marks the biggest overhaul in building safety regulations in nearly 40 years.
But a recent survey by Construction Management found that only 23% of construction professionals think that they and their organisations are ready for the Bill.
In an interview Dame Judith Hackitt warned that too many construction firms were waiting for the Building Safety Bill to come into force before taking action.
Hackitt said: “Even in cases where third sector bodies have done all of the legwork to set up new frameworks – for example, the excellent competence work led by [Construction Industry Council chief executive] Graham Watts – the construction industry is not taking the steps which only they can take to train their own employees and drive the need for competence throughout the supply chain.”
