Agency to revise building and construction laws set up

An agency that is to revise legislation regulating the building and construction industry was set up through a legal notice published this morning.

In a statement, the Infrastructure Malta said that the agency would be revising legislation with the aim of consolidating and updating it to reflect present day realities.

The agency will also be “preparing, implementing and communicating these new policies while speaking and consulting with several stakeholders”.

Minister Ian Borg noted that work had started last year with the publication of a white paper on the setting up of the Malta Construction and Building Authority.

“The setting up of this agency was the next step before we finally set up the Authority in the near future,” Borg said, adding that the new agency followed the implementation of amended regulations for demolition and excavation works.  

According to the statement, the authority will “eventually consolidate” various entities, including “the Building Regulation Office, the Masons Board and the Building Regulation Board”, and will also be monitoring the performance of completed buildings once occuptied”.

Important milestone in better regulation - Kamra tal-Periti

The Kamra tal-Periti welcomes the establishment of the new agency, which it described as the “precursor” of the promised authority. Government, it said, had committed to have legislation for the authority subjected to “parliamentary procedure” by October 2019.

Asked at a press conference last month, when the authority would be set up, Borg said that he would personally have liked the authority to be in place by the end of the year, but said that ultimately this would depend on parliament’s schedule.

As for the agency, the Kamra underscored that it would be tasked with the “design, implementation and dissemination of policies together with the consolidation and review of laws and regulations, in the form of a national building code, as well as with carrying out all the necessary preparations to set up the Building and Construction Authority”.

The new agency, it said, was an important milestone in ensuring better regulation of the industry. It added that it was looking forward to presenting its proposals to the agency.

First step in target driven journey – Chamber of Commerce

The Chamber of Commerce also welcomed the establishment of the new agency.

“The chamber augurs that this is only the first step in a target-driven journey of raising quality standards and upholding ethical operation in the very active construction industry,” it said in a statement.   

It reiterated its belief in the need for a complete overhaul of the industry and for an industry to raise the standards of the industry.  

The chamber said it would continue to advocate for a high-quality economy where “mediocrity and sub-standards become a thing of the past and are replaced by a culture of excellence”.