Experts duck and dive over leaky homes

By FRANCESCA MOLD

A tit-for-tat row has developed between the Building Industry Authority and a building research organisation over which group should have raised the alarm about rotting homes before it reached crisis point.

The Building Research Association gave evidence before a Parliamentary select committee inquiry in Wellington yesterday into leaky building syndrome.

It raised concern about a Building Industry Authority letter sent to Internal Affairs Minister George Hawkins that criticised the research association.

The letter was sent after Mr Hawkins asked the authority to explain why it had failed to alert the Government to the leaky homes problem.

Research association chairman Stuart Kendon said the authority had tried to justify its inaction and abrogation of its statutory duty in terms of weathertightness. It also blamed many in the industry for the size of the problem and made unjustifiable allegations about the research group.

The authority's letter was circulated to committee members but has not been made public.

Mr Kendon said the research association had no legal responsibility for building controls.

He described his association as a coach on the sideline, there to provide advice and support.

The industry authority should be like the referee, following the ball closely and blowing the whistle if necessary.

Mr Kendon said while the research association had no legal responsibility for building controls it had researched the leaky building problem. It had become aware of the potential significance of the problem about two years ago and had written to the industry authority in 2000.

In its submission, the research association said the leaky homes problem was complex and had a number of contributing factors.

The solution lay in better industry education and skill levels, from design through to building consents, approvals, construction and inspection.

A review of building regulations was required and more money was needed for research on weathertightness.

The Institute of Architects also gave evidence yesterday. Spokesman John Sinclair said the crisis had largely been caused by deregulation of the building industry. He also admitted the industry had not delivered.

New Zealand was one of only two countries in the developed world that did not regulate building skills, he said.

Second-hand car salesman needed more qualifications than did designers of 30-storey buildings, he said.

The industry authority and research association had acted professionally and competently, he said.

"Both of them did a good job and I'm sorry to see them having a bat at each other."

Internal Affairs officials were questioned about their role.

The department's general manager of policy, Helen Algar, said the department had beefed up its monitoring of the authority since concerns were raised.

The authority was now reporting to Mr Hawkins every two weeks and was developing a more detailed business plan.

She confirmed the authority had been looking at the issue since 1998 and had a member on an industry working party investigating the problem.

However, she said the department had not received any indication that concerns about leaky buildings were serious enough to warrant bringing forward a review of the Building Act.

The review had started in 1999.

Priority had been given to a review of gaming rather than changes to building legislation.

Labour MP Russell Fairbrother, a member of the committee, suggested the authority was becoming the "meat in the sandwich".

Territorial authorities had responsibility for raising concerns about local building matters, he said.

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Further reading
Feature: Leaky buildings

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