Scrapping the Code will favour housebuilders, not green growth
MPs on the Committee urged Communities and Local Government Secretary Eric Pickles to “think again” before scrapping the Code, which they argued had been a “big success” in driving up home building standards, delivering local choice and supporting green exports.
However, Ministers have dismissed these warnings, saying that scrapping the Code will enable the creation of a simple set of standards that will end confusion among councils and housebuilders.
MPs argue that the move will “bulldoze” local choice to favour housebuilders, leading to a future of homes built on the cheap.
The committee also criticised DCLG for ignoring research showing the rapidly decreasing cost of renewable energy technology as well as failing to back green growth and innovation by setting clear standards on sustainable construction materials.
The EAC report argues that the existing policy supports ‘practical, sustainable local solutions’, and ending it will give rise to a ‘lowest-common-denominator national standard’.
Jo Wheeler, Senior Policy Advisor at UK-GBC, comments: “The Code for Sustainable Homes has transformed the industry’s attitude to sustainability, and has been very helpful in setting out a clear direction for future standards. The time was right for review and rationalisation, but any changes must support the delivery of high quality homes.
"With the demise of the Code and big omissions in the Housing Standards Review consultation around issues like materials, we risk losing a momentum that has transformed the way homes have been built over the last seven years.”
Defending the Government’s plans, Communities Minister Stephen Williams says that current standards have created 'a bureaucratic mish mash of rules that housebuilders face across the country'. He says:
"We are consulting on how best to end this confusion and create a simple and effective set of standards that councils and housebuilders can understand and that support new homebuilding without compromising safety or sustainability standards.
“New homes are already being built to high standards of energy efficiency introduced by this Government," adds Williams, "saving people up to £200 a year on their fuel bills and £60,000 for businesses, as well as making major reductions in carbon emissions from all new buildings. We will be going further still by making all new homes zero carbon from 2016."
The Renewable Energy Association, which is cited extensively in the report, has welcomed the ECA's findings. REA Chief Executive Dr Nina Skorupska says:
“DCLG must open its eyes to the cost reductions and economic opportunities in new build renewables, from solar panels to wood burners to heat pumps. Building energy efficient homes with their own clean energy supply means lower energy bills for occupants from the day they move in. The costs of on-site renewables are continuing to fall and installing them during construction rather than retrofit makes them even cheaper.
“Local Authorities are enthusiastically making use of the Code for Sustainable Homes and Planning & Energy Act, so they must be maintained until a solution which drives both localism and renewables can be incorporated into the Building Regulations.”
Environmental Audit Committee Chair Joan Walley says: "Hundreds of thousands of homes have to be built in the coming decades. Smart energy and water saving measures – which will ultimately save homeowners money on their bills – must become the norm if we want our homes to be fit for the future.
"The Code for Sustainable Homes incentivises developers and designers to think about sustainability from the outset of a project and throughout the development process. It is a proven and flexible way of pushing up home building standards and should not be dropped."
