Architects want to give contractors more responsibility for construction sites, as part of a wide-ranging reform that their professional lobby is proposing to completely overhaul practices, regulation and enforcement in the industry.

The 22 public entities that now regulate various sectors of building and construction should be consolidated into a single body, Kamra tal-Periti (KTP) is proposing, saying these reforms would go a long way to bring much-needed peace of mind to both professionals and the public.

The industry has been widely criticised for failing to adhere to international best practices and for lapses in safety standards, following a spate of high-profile incidents that saw homes adjacent to construction sites collapsing and a number of site accidents resulting in death or serious injury to construction workers.

A number of workers have died or been badly injured in construction site accidents.

Building and construction regulation has seldom changed since the 19th century and piecemeal legislation implemented hastily has done little to solve the root of the issues faced by the industry.

“These are a concrete set of proposals which are tried and tested internationally, and with effort from industry stakeholders shouldn’t be impossible to achieve,” KTP vice-president Andre Pizzutto said.

He said the proposals were primarily motivated by its social and civil responsibility to the profession. “We have to look inwards and recognise the construction today has become more complex and we must raise standards and provide legal certainty in order to tackle some deep issues. 

“These proposals are here to bring peace of mind to the profession as well as to the public. We need to be sure everyone is aware of the risks and introduce a culture of responsibility and ownership of what we’re doing. It is not acceptable that the lines of responsibility have become opaque.”

A woman, Miriam Pace, died in this building collapse in Ħamrun in March. Photo: Mark Zammit Cordina

10 key principles

The proposals are based on 10 primary principles, the first of which is to separate planning and building processes. Planning should focus on the social and environmental impact of a development while building regulation focuses on the construction of the object.

The Planning Authority, KTP said, was being burdened with having to enforce building regulations and undermining its focus on the planning aspect.

The second principle is clear regulatory processes that promote public safety and quality, rather than scrambling to assign blame after an accident has occurred.

A lot of steps and due diligence are currently missing from the process, KTP noted, adding that this was giving rise to risk.

It is important therefore, the third proposal holds, to make a clear distinction between building regulations and construction regulations. The former set the standard that the finished product should adhere to, while the latter would regulate exclusively the process through which a project is developed.

Adherence to building regulations would fall under the responsibility of the architect or civil engineer while responsibility for construction would under the contractor.

The fourth proposal calls for the consolidation of the 22 entities currently regulating bits and pieces of building and construction regulation into a single entity under the Building and Construction Agency.

The BCA would then oversee assessment of buildings, building authorisations, enforcement and monitoring of the construction processes.

Architects and civil engineers were acting as negotiators between clients and the 22 entities in order for projects to move forward. The fragmentation and conflicting regulation had made the system unmanageable and was contributing to a lack of oversight, KTP said.

Under the proposed reform, public buildings and large projects would have to submit to an independent review by an engineering auditor, to provide an extra layer of due diligence on buildings that pose a higher public risk.

The KTP is also proposing that during the construction phase, responsibility of a site is given exclusively to the contractor throughout the duration of works.

For this role, contractors should be skilled and licensed accordingly and will also be required to certify that the executed works comply with the design instructions and with the requirements of the Construction Products Directive.

KTP deputy president Andre Pizzuto speaking during the launch of the reform proposal.

A building will only be declared fit for use after the completion of construction is formalised with the BCA and a compliance certificate is issued. 

Buildings will also be submitted to regular post-occupancy audits, which will ensure that design standards are updated regularly if needed, such as fire safety systems or wheelchair access.

Enforcement in the sector, the KTP said, had failed. It was therefore proposing that enforcement be outsourced to BCA-licensed private inspectors.

“No single reform will address all the problems that have been besetting the industry for the past few decades. However, government and stakeholders have a duty to act swiftly and decisively in the interest of the common good,” the document concludes.