Legal background
Building Safety Regulator
- The Building Safety Regulator will be established in the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) by amending the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974.
Higher-risk buildings in design and construction
- The new measures in the design and construction phase of a higher-risk building’s life cycle are based on strengthening the existing regime for regulating building work under the Building Act 1984, and the three sets of building regulations made primarily under the section 1 power to make building regulations. These are: the Building Regulations 2010; the Building (Approved Inspectors etc) Regulations 2010; and the Building (Local Authority Charges) Regulations 2010.
- The dutyholders regime in design and construction builds on the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015, which are health and safety regulations made under the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974.
Higher-risk buildings in occupation
- Unlike the measures in design and construction, the more stringent building safety regime for higher-risk buildings in occupation is new and therefore does not require substantial amendments to current legislation.
- The Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 is amended to imply terms into leases for a term of seven years or more of dwellings in higher-rise buildings so that building safety measures, the associated costs and the related charges of the ongoing safety management of the building may be passed onto leaseholders and will not be reliant on the service charge provisions in each lease. The landlord makes a commitment to the leaseholder to carry out the necessary measures, and to observe the statutory requirements in relation to raising charges; and the leaseholder makes a commitment to the landlord to pay a fair share of reasonable charges and co-operate with the building safety regime.
- Further amendments being made to the existing section 20 consultation process in the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985. These will set out additional steps the landlord must undertake when embarking on defined building safety remedial works. The landlord must take reasonable steps:
- to ascertain whether any grant is payable in respect of the remediation works and if so to obtain the grant;
- to ascertain whether all or any of the cost of remediation works may be met by a third party and if so to obtain monies from the third party; and
- to ascertain whether any other prescribed kind of funding is available and to obtain such funding.
- These amendments are designed to offer further protections to leaseholders, ensuring that all other cost recovery avenues are appropriately explored first. This does not change the existing liability of leaseholders to pay for any building safety works.
Other provisions
Architects
- Measures to improve the competence of architects are achieved by amending the Architects Act 1997.
Democratic filter
- The Housing Act 1996 is amended to remove the democratic filter and speed up redress for social housing residents.
Construction products
- Regulation of construction products in the EU is under the provisions of the EU Construction Product Regulations (305/2011). This was brought into UK law immediately following Transition Day by the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 and amended for the UK by the Construction Products (Amendment etc.) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019 (2019/465) and the Construction Products (Amendment etc.) (EU Exit) Regulations 2020 (2020/1359).
- This sets out mandatory requirements for construction products where an EU harmonised standard exists (or a European Technical Assessment) and ensures that in the UK market the same products perform to the same standard. In the UK these are "designated products" (or subject to a UK Technical Assessment) and the Secretary of State has powers to add to or amend designation.
- There is a general safety requirement that applies to products to be used by consumers only (implemented in the General Product Safety Regulations 2005 (2005/1803)).
- A list of legislation referenced or amended by the Building Safety Act is as follows (alphabetised):
- Architects Act 1997;
- Building Act 1984;
- The Building Regulations 2010;
- Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Act 2002;
- The Construction Products Regulations 1991;
- The Construction Products Regulations 2013 ;
- The Construction Products (Amendment etc.) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019 ;
- The Construction Products (Amendment etc.) (EU Exit) Regulations 2020 ;
- Regulation (EU) No 305/2011 (regulation for laying down harmonised conditions for the marketing of construction products) (retained EU Law);
- Criminal Justice Act 2003;
- Data Protection Act 2018;
- Defective Premises Act 1972;
- Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Act 2013;
- Environmental Protection Act 1990;
- European Communities Act 1972;
- European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018;
- Fire and Rescue Services Act 2004;
- Freedom of Information Act 2000;
- Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974;
- Housing Act 1996;
- Housing Act 2004;
- Housing and Regeneration Act 2008;
- Human Rights Act 1998;
- Insolvency Act 1986;
- Land Registration Act 2002;
- Landlord and Tenant Act 1985;
- Landlord and Tenant Act 1987;
- Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993;
- Limitation Act 1980;
- Limited Partnerships Act 1907;
- Local Government Act 1972;
- Local Government etc (Scotland) Act 1994;
- Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1982;
- Parliamentary Commissioner Act 1967;
- Partnership Act 1890;
- Prescription and Limitation (Scotland) Act 1973;
- Prevention of Damage by Pests Act 1949;
- Public Health Act 1961;
- The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005
- Sentencing Act 2020;
- Sustainable and Secure Buildings Act 2004;
- Town and Country Planning Act 1990;
- Tribunals, Courts and Enforcement Act 2007.
