Building regulations make Dodge City look good

The evidence points to the fact that stringent building controls are needed to protect the interests of citizens, but the current controls appear to be more about optics than anything else more substantial, and a review of these is unlikely to change anything, writes Michael Clifford

Back in November 2011, Phil Hogan told the Dáil there was no problem with regulation in the building industry.

“A robust system of building control exists, and this is demonstrated by the Priory Hall situation, where the local authority is successfully using its powers to make the appropriate party responsible,” he said. Hogan was effectively saying that the control of the quality of building in Priory Hall was evidenced in the pursuit of the developer who built it badly.