The Building Safety Act Northern Ireland

The Northern Ireland Executive has the power to legislate on building safety, but progress has been affected by periods of political instability.

The current regulations for Northern Ireland (NI) are the Building Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2012. While Northern Ireland has not yet implemented comprehensive building safety reforms similar to those in England, some parts of the UK Act, such as those relating to construction products, extend to Northern Ireland. The Construction Products Regulator will have jurisdiction in Northern Ireland, ensuring a degree of consistency across the UK in this area.

The Northern Irish Department for Communities has formed an agreement with the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) which will allow buildings over 11 metres in Northern Ireland with unsafe cladding to apply for funding from the Cladding Safety Scheme in England.

In January 2022, the Department of Finance in Northern Ireland launched a consultation on building control regulations, proposing changes to improve the energy performance of buildings. However, broader building safety reforms have been slower to materialise.

The implementation of new building safety measures in Northern Ireland may depend on the functioning of the Northern Ireland Executive. In its absence, civil servants have limited powers to introduce new legislation. Despite these challenges, the construction industry in Northern Ireland should prepare for potential future reforms, which may draw inspiration from the approaches taken in other parts of the UK.