Blog archive

This blog will look at one of the key duties of the accountable person – the  requirement to register higher-risk buildings  with the building safety regulator, which Lauren Michaelides and Alison Garrett have posted on previously.

As mentioned in my colleague, Lauren Michaelides’ recent blog, the online portal for registration of in-occupation higher risk building is now open and the principal accountable person must register all existing higher risk buildings by 1 October 2023.

Construction projects often involve collateral warranties and/or third party rights so that third parties (such as funders, purchasers, tenants) can enforce the benefit of a contract they are not a party to.

As part of our Building Safety series of blogs, we discuss the new causes of action against construction product manufacturers in more detail – in particular the new limitation periods that come with it.

The NEC (including NEC4) suites of contracts share their own style and approach to drafting and balance of risk. One area of difference between the NEC4’s approach, compared to other standard forms, is on any termination of contract. The NEC4 suite places the termination table at the centre of a contractual process for any termination. The termination table is similar

The Building Safety Act 2022 introduces the concepts of both the principal accountable person (PAP) and the accountable person. 

The online portal for registering higher-risk buildings opened on 6 April 2023 (click here) Registration currently applies to all occupied higher-risk buildings, being buildings which are at least 18 metres in height or at least 7 storeys and with 2 or more residential units. 

A new PPN 04/23 has been published to replace  PPN 11/16 on the procurement of steel in government contracts.  It applies with immediate effect to central government bodies, agencies and NDPBs when they are conducting regulated procurements over the value threshold. Other contracting authorities, such as higher education institutions, NHS bodies and local authorities are also encouraged to apply it.

Registration of higher-risk buildings which are already occupied starts on 6 April 2023.

The Building Safety Act 2022 (BSA) has brought about sweeping changes to the scope of the Defective Premises Act 1972 (DPA) and, importantly, to limitation.

The Chancellor’s 2023 spring Budget included a number of reforms and spending promises designed to improve the planning system in England. This included greater support for nutrient neutrality in response to nutrient pollution which is “a major barrier to the government’s ambition of delivering 300,000 homes per year”.

Chancellor’s first budget of 2023 may have been called a “Back to Work” budget but it included some key measures focused on infrastructure and development, and the government’s commitment to achieve net zero by 2050. Here is a summary of the key points for the construction industry: