Mascot Towers’ owners give evidence at building regulation standards inquiry
One of the owner’s of units in Mascot Towers broke down today as he gave his statement to the inquiry into the regulation of building standards and quality in NSW. Vijay Vital detailed the impact of the forced evacuation had on his family and how they have still been kept in the dark about their return.
NSW
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A tearful owner of a unit at Mascot Towers brought the human face of suffering due to the building defects crisis to Parliament yesterday (Monday), while a buildings expert said the current system is not fit for purpose.
Homeowner Vijay Vital broke down as he detailed the impact of the forced evacuation in June from the blighted building and the effect on his family.
Giving evidence to the Inquiry into Regulation Of Building Standards, Building Quality and Building Disputes, Mr Vital said he had owned the apartment for ten years — and many defects had had to be fixed over that period.
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But the sudden forced evacuation in June of the building — when residents were given two hours to pack up and leave — has been traumatic, especially as residents still do not know the reason behind the order.
“I stand here as a parent as well … my daughter asked me: ‘When can we go home?’,” he said, before he broke down in tears. “I shouldn’t be accountable for it,” he eventually continued, before breaking down again.
Former secretary to the treasury Michael Lambert spoke of his frustration at the lack of progress after he wrote a report for the government in 2015 and was excoriating in his criticism of the government’s discussion paper, Building Stronger Foundations.
“The regulation is inadequate to this situation,” he said. “The whole change in the industry occurred in the 1980s with this shift from the architect, a chartered engineer and the clerk of works to a design and construct model, a model where the builder runs the show.
“There was also a move to private certification and that could have been addressed if the regulation had become stronger and more effective but that wasn’t the circumstance.”
“NSW … has the poorest regulatory system of the main states. It has the most fragmented, poorly constructed building regulations structure and it is located, in my opinion, totally inappropriately in Fair Trading which has an approach of low minimal regulation, a reactive approach — and they haven’t got the professional skills.
“There’s no single magic solution. It’s not certification which is the sole problem, there are many other problems.
“There have been minor gestures [by the government] but the two core areas … a practice guide for certifiers to which they would be held accountable and to address the issue of fire protection safety and it has failed in both.
“The current proposals before us in the discussion paper Building Stronger Foundations, are totally inadequate and were written by someone who doesn’t know building regulation, quite clearly.”
He said NSW appointing a Building Commissioner was not enough. It needed “a building commission, a building agency directly accountable to the Minister , fully resourced, as it is Queensland an Victoria with the powers and the skills involved and supported by an advisory committee. Failure in that area will lead to further decline in confidence.”
Asked if he felt there was a reluctance on behalf of government to implement his suggested changes, Mr Lambert said he believed “the Minister doesn’t have an understanding of the level of complexities involved and I think that in Fair Trading there is a hostility to effect reformation, a view that you don’t need regulation, you just need to have reaction to consumer complaints.
He said he believed civil servants, with no understanding or knowledge of regulation, were partly to blame for the regulatory system around buildings.
“There is a reluctance to change the glistening model to one more fit for purpose. That is the fundamental problem and they have persuaded successive ministers that there is no need for change”
Alton Chen, another resident at Mascot Tower told the inquiry owners could be liable for “ten of millions of dollars” of remediation work at the building. He said people were all forced to evacuate at short notice and many people were only notified by email — and still don’t know the root cause. Because of this uncertainty, owners could not claim on their insurance.
He said those living at Mascot Towers had been given assistance by the state government, but said that while governments had continually lowered standards to encourage builders and developers to build, this made the government responsible for finding a financial solution to the issue.
Earlier in the day Chair David Shoebridge expressed his disappointment that Better Regulation minister Kevin Anderson had refused to attend the inquiry. The new Buildings Commissioner, who takes up his role on Wednesday, will appear at the inquiry on Friday.
Earlier in proceedings State Insurance Regulatory Authority Chief Executive, Carmel Donnolly said claims were rising, while there were fewer policies in force. She said 95% of claims arose out of builders who had become insolvent, with the top three defects being masonry and brick work, external rendering and waterproofing.
Owners Corporation Network director, Jane Hearn, suggested that some of that stamp duty should be returned to allow them to pay for the defects.
She said: “We have allowed two dollar companies and phoenixing to become institutionalised.”
“Self regulation has been pursued in the name of the affordable housing without factoring in the defects,” she said.
Originally published as Mascot Towers’ owners give evidence at building regulation standards inquiry
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