The Property Council of Australia believes the focus must be kept on building regulation compliance and enforcement following the release of the Shergold Weir report.

With a month having passed since the Building Ministers Forum meeting in Sydney committed to the uniform implementation of the 24 recommendations in the report, Council Cheif Executive Ken Morrison said it was critical that ministers kept the momentum going.

“While Australia’s building regulations are very strong, governments do need to do more to ensure these are being complied with and enforced," he said.

“People in the building industry are overwhelmingly doing the right thing, but it is important that those that cut corners are not let off the hook.

"This is important to deliver better outcomes for owners and tenants as well as strengthen confidence in the industry as a whole."

The Australian Building Codes Board is set to prepare a national framework to guide the implementation of recommendations from the Shergold Weir Building Confidence report following last month's agreement.

Mr Morrison said it was important that industry professionals were provided with greater certainty about their roles and accountabilities through uniform and consistent application of building regulations.

“The fundamental role of private certifiers in the construction process needs to be reinforced," he said.

“The Shergold Weir review did not find that private certification was mistake or recommend that it be unwound. 

“Instead it found that the key focus needed to be better compliance and enforcement strategies from state and territory governments.

“The report noted that overwhelmingly private certifiers were professionals acting with integrity, and private certification now occurs as part of the vast majority of building approvals processes."

Mr Morrison said the industry was now looking to ministers for a clear sense of purpose in delivering on the Shergold Weir recommendations and following up on the commitments given at the BMF meeting last month.

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