The Federation of Master Builders (FMB) has slammed the House of Commons Environmental Audit Committee's report into the Code for Sustainable Homes and the Housing Standards Review as "one-sided" and called on the Committee to re-examine the evidence.

The Committee's report calls on the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) to reconsider plans outlined in the recent Housing Standards Review consultation to phase out the Code for Sustainable Homes and questioned its plans to rationalise technical standards through a set of tiered national standards.


Brian Berry, FMB Chief Executive, said: "For years, the building industry has had to negotiate a proliferation of competing, overlapping and sometimes contrary local and national standards. These have added unnecessary complexity and cost to the house building industry, and have had a disproportionate impact on smaller firms and smaller developments."

Mr Berry continued: "The Housing Standards Review, which took place over an extended period of time with input from all interested parties, systematically examined the different standards in operation and proposed a clear way forward: a set of tiered national standards and the incorporation of these standards over time, wherever possible, into Building Regulations. This would draw a clear and sensible line of distinction between the planning system, which should properly be focused on the impact of buildings on their immediate environment in keeping with the understanding and expertise of local planning authorities, and the Building Regulations, which deal with technical standards."

(CD/IT)