4 INDUSTRY NEWS
FROM THE EDITOR
James Parker
At the end of August, Andy Burnham announced another voluntary licensing scheme for builders, which he was determined to call a “crackdown on cowboys.” It was more a ‘backdown’ from anything substantial, and seems to amount to a badge rewarding people already doing the right thing.
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Burnham used a Daily Mail article as the means to launch the initiative to a broad, Middle England cash-rich audience. His team no doubt hoped to resonate with those still active in the housing market with his comments on billions being lost to rogue traders. The new Approved Code and payment system, due to be launched this month, arrive in a context of “too many people being ripped off,” said the Ministry of Housing, using Federation of Master Builders data showing more than one in four home improvement projects in the past 18 months had issues with builders. These included “projects abandoned half way through, and undue pressure on elderly people to overpay for shoddy work.” More than one in three faced extra costs, and in 2024, homeowners spent “over £10.3bn on home and garden maintenance due to losses, overpriced costs or unfair practices.”
The industry was lukewarm on this quality mark idea for good fi rms, in place of a mandatory licensing system which would instantly highlight non-compliant building companies. Brian Berry, Chief Executive of the FMB said it was a “real concern that this is just another voluntary programme without regulation behind it,” although he backed the signalling of “a positive change in the Government’s commitment on the issue.”
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Bizarrely, as the industry is expected to deliver more and more rigour, and high-performance homes, anyone is still able to set themseles up as a uilder with ero ualifi cations. erry re-asserted the FMB call that “in the long term the Government should be looking at a compulsory licensing scheme for building companies.” The only thing I’d question about this is why “long term?,” surely this is needed now?
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UK trades directory The Elite Construction Network welcomed the move towards a voluntary Code, but said this plus the proposed “milestone” based payment scheme duplicates services it already offers. an ensher, co-founder, said t confi rms what we have believed from the start: the industry needs proper standards, properly checked.”
And the NFB has unsurprisingly criticised the limited scheme, saying it “would not stop bad actors operating and ripping people off.”
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he industry needs clarifi cation on how the new ode differs from the existing Chartered Trading Standards Institute’s Approved Code, which already covers around 10,000 housebuilders. I’d argue what it really needs is a punitive system of regulation which will only allow those ualifi ed on safety and quality competence to enter a site, and throw repeat offenders in prison. Only something this draconian might clear out the dead wood for good.
James Parker
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