Housing

Building watchdog claims country faces ‘national emergency’ over regulation

The National Building Control and Market Surveillance Office pleads for additional resources as it warns of severe staff shortages, despite political pressure following mica crisis and Grenfell Tower disaster

Dozens of documents spanning four years, released under Freedom of Information laws, show that the state’s own building regulator believes it cannot adequately execute its function

Ireland’s building regulator has claimed that the country faces a “national emergency” of construction regulation, repeatedly warning it faces severe staff shortages exacerbated by the mica crisis and the London Grenfell Tower disaster, the Business Post can reveal.

The National Building Control and Market Surveillance Office (NBCO), which coordinates the oversight of construction in Ireland, has privately told bosses it has been “understaffed since its inception” and said its lack of resources has created a ...