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Australian bodies seek “urgent” regulation changes over combustible cladding fears

An open letter written by five members of the Australian construction industry has called for changes to the country’s building regulations.

The issues raised by the groups include:

  • The lack of "strict cladding-related exclusions" in new builds, where recent regulatory responses have been "patchy and inconsistent"
  • State and local governments’ auditing of combustible cladding in existing high-rise projects has not been "consistent and comprehensive" and no remediation actions have been introduced
  • "Major defects" have prevented building owners finding insurance coverage
  • Responses to the 18-month old Shergold-Weir report have been "inconsistent and fragmented".

The letter calls on the Australian government to set out a risk assessment and rectification strategy for buildings with combustible cladding.

The groups also want a government-industry partnership for the implementation of the Shergold-Weir report, which was commissioned in the aftermath of the UK’s Grenfell Tower tragedy.

The five groups behind the call are the Australian Industry Group, the Australian Construction Industry Forum, the Insurance Council of Australia, Master Builders Australia and the Property Council of Australia. 

Image courtesy of Guido van Nispen

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