Page 2819 - Week 10 - Tuesday, 13 August 2013
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There are a number of specific improvements in the bill that I would like to speak to. The first is an amendment to the Building Act. This introduces builders’ notification to the building certifier of completion of stages. This includes a stage inspection, and needs to include a statement that the stage has not only been completed but that it also accords with approved plans. These stage inspections are an important improvement to our building processes. The statement for this requirement also includes noting whether the building work included any handling or disturbance of asbestos.
Secondly, the bill amends sections of the Architects Act which provide for the declaration of qualifications which are used to establish eligibility to be a registered architect. This means that the Architects Board can keep the list of qualifications up to date via a notifiable instrument.
Next, the clauses around the Building Code of Australia in the Building (General) Regulation are useful in that they clarify that the Building Code is a separate code which applies in the ACT but is not in fact ACT legislation. This also means that the building codes which apply in the ACT automatically change when the Building Code of Australia is updated.
The Building Code and its appendices also contain any jurisdiction-specific variations, including those for the ACT. The Construction Occupations Registrar must notify the ACT public through a notice in the newspaper when the code is updated. It may sound problematic that the code is not in our ACT legislation directly, but it makes sense, as industry stakeholders understand that the Building Code of Australia applies in the ACT and know to look there for current rules.
This bill also makes similar provisions in relation to the Plumbing Code of Australia, which will be applicable in the same way to the ACT as the Building Code of Australia. It is worth noting that the ACT-specific appendices will be available on the ACT legislation register.
Next, it is pleasing to see that this bill describes how any alternative solutions can be allowed to meet performance-based code requirements. This is one issue which I know can be quite frustrating for innovative developers, as sometimes they want to construct something which does not meet a rule, yet is more sustainable. The option of outlining and detailing any alternative solutions and assessment methods which may be used to meet performance-based requirements is an improvement which many architects will hopefully take advantage of.
Some very important elements of this bill relate to construction occupations licensing. The regulations around licensing allow the registrar under the Construction Occupations (Licensing) Act to undertake disciplinary proceedings. I do not think that anyone in this place would disagree that this is an important part of the continuing work of implementing the Building Quality Forum recommendations, as we need to be certain that the workmanship of all construction trades is to a high standard. This includes a huge range of trades, including electrical work, gas fitting, plumbing, draining, building, waterproofing, building surveying and assessment, asbestos assessment and removal, and so forth.
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