10. H V ROSS ROBERTSON (Labour—Manukau East) Link to this
to the Minister for Building Issues
What reports, if any, has he received on proposals to license building practitioners?
Hon CLAYTON COSGROVE (Minister for Building Issues) Link to this
I have received numerous reports supporting the proposed licensing regime for the building industry, which is part and parcel of the Government’s programme to restore confidence in the sector and ensure that buildings are built right the first time, while at the same time protecting the Kiwi DIY tradition. The Registered Master Builders Federation, for instance, stated that the regime “would ensure only skilled and competent people could work in the industry.” The Construction Industry Council stated: “the days of cowboys in the building sector are clearly numbered.”, and: “The new regime will hold designers and builders of houses accountable.” Finally, the Certified Builders Association stated that the regime “is a significant milestone in the project to reform the building industry.” It is a sound policy from a sound Government.
H V Ross Robertson Link to this
How will do-it-yourself home handymen and handywomen be affected by the licensing regime?
Hon CLAYTON COSGROVE Link to this
The good old Kiwi tradition of having a go with a hammer and nails has been protected. Some in the industry wanted us to restrict all DIY work, but we have struck a common-sense balance. DIYers will be able to tackle nearly all the work they do now. For instance, they will be able to build a new kitchen, a bathroom, a deck, and a garden shed, and a farmer will be able to build a hayshed. But significant work will need to be supervised by a licensed builder. That includes new buildings and extensions, or major alterations to where people live and work, and it will ensure public safety and buyer confidence when a property is on-sold.
Hon Dr Nick Smith Link to this
Can the Minister give this House one single example of a leaky building constructed by a do-it-yourself builder that can justify changes in what Kiwis can do to their own houses; can he name one example of a leaky home problem that has arisen from a do-it-yourselfer, when the Weathertight Homes Resolution Service says there are none?
Hon CLAYTON COSGROVE Link to this
Let us be clear on this matter. As I have just said for the benefit of the member, do-it-yourselfers will be able to do basically what they do now, unless it is significant work. I say to the member we should be clear that the state of the construction industry today can be levelled at two things: first, the deliberate destruction of apprenticeships in the 1990s—[ Interruption]
Madam SPEAKERHon CLAYTON COSGROVE Link to this
—and, second, the total deregulation of the industry in the 1990s—[ Interruption]
Would the Minister please be seated. The Minister knows better than that. When I am on my feet, he is to be seated. Would the Minister please now address the question.
Hon CLAYTON COSGROVE Link to this
If the member wants to go around Auckland and Christchurch, he will find examples of leaky buildings all over the show. Yes, some were done by individuals. Under our regime, do-it-yourselfers will be able to do basically what they do now, apart from significant work. Hence, we will not get a leaky building problem. I say again that the legacy of the previous National Government was the deregulation of the whole building industry in the 1990s. Anything went—shonky, lazy cowboys were allowed into the industry. That was a symptom of the National Party caucus—it is gone, too.
Hon Dr Nick Smith Link to this
I seek the leave of the House to table two documents. The first of those is a speech made by the Hon George Hawkins, who said that Labour was responsible for the deregulation of the building industry in the late 1980s and that National had no right to claim credit for it.
Hon Dr Nick Smith Link to this
The second document is a formal answer from the Weathertight Homes Resolution Service, which states that in not a single case out of over 3,000 leaky home cases were the leaks the responsibility of a do-it-yourselfer.
Hon Dr Michael Cullen Link to this
Is there any point in people going to the Weathertight Homes Resolution Service to complain about a leaky home that they built themselves?
Hon CLAYTON COSGROVE Link to this
I thank the member for his question. I think the answer is self-evident: no. Dr Smith may disagree. He happens to be an engineer, but he has no credibility in the industry.
Rt Hon Winston Peters Link to this
I raise a point of order, Madam Speaker. There is a tradition in this House that if a member seeks leave to table a document, he or she usually has the courtesy to wait until the end of the supplementary questions to a question. That is the first point. The second point is that Dr Smith has made a claim in respect of Mr Hawkins’ speech regarding who was responsible for the deregulation of the industry. I notice that he has asked for leave to table the document, and he has not tabled it. Can we please see it?
It used to be that members sought leave to table documents at the end of the questioning, and it certainly would be of assistance to the Speaker if that happened. I notice that in many cases it does not happen now, but that is members’ privilege. Also, members have until 10 o’clock this evening to be able to table documents, and I am sure they will do so.
Hon Dr Nick Smith Link to this
Why is the Government setting up a whole new Government bureaucracy to license builders rather than following the model for lawyers, doctors, engineers, nurses, and accountants, whereby the Government approves the professional associations to undertake that role; why does the Minister not trust either the Registered Master Builders Federation or the Certified Builders Association to license builders directly, rather than creating a dual structure with a Government bureaucracy?
Hon CLAYTON COSGROVE Link to this
The reason we have set this regime up is the botch-up and the legacy that was left to us, thanks to the Government that member belonged to. I am happy to table the support from the Registered Master Builders Federation, the Certified Builders Association, the Construction Industry Council, and the other trade associations. If the member is right, then everybody else who supported this regime is wrong. I will measure the credibility of people like Mr Pieter Burghout, chief executive officer of the Registered Master Builders Federation, against that member’s lack of credibility when he was Minister in the previous Government.
Hon Dr Nick Smith Link to this
I raise a point of order, Madam Speaker. This Minister has again, in respect of that answer, chosen to go outside your previous ruling by questioning my own credibility. But, more important, he did not answer my question. My question was quite straightforward, and it asked why the Government has chosen to set up a new bureaucracy to do the registration, rather than, as the Government has done in other areas of professional regulation, trusting either the master builders or the certified builders to do it. He has made no attempt at all to answer that quite specific and important question.
Hon CLAYTON COSGROVE Link to this
This Government works in partnership with industry associations like the Registered Master Builders Federation and the Certified Builders Association, which have supported the regime. They agree with us; we agree with them. We are doing what an industry wants and are protecting good, honest Kiwis when they buy a home, so that they get a licensed builder to build a building right the first time. We are doing that because it is supported by the industry and it is the right thing to do in order to protect consumers. That member over there in the Opposition did nothing to protect consumers. He hung them out to dry.
Hon Dr Nick Smith Link to this
I seek the leave of the House to table documents from the Registered Master Builders Federation, showing it would much prefer a self-regulation model rather than that imposed on it by the Minister.
Hon CLAYTON COSGROVE Link to this
I seek leave to table media statements from the Registered Master Builders Federation of 23 April, the Construction Industry Council of 23 April, and the Certified Builders Association of the same date, where they support the Government announcement wholeheartedly.