But Mark Reynolds says proposal is ‘long way off’ and that getting it to just 13 weeks would be ‘huge step forward’
Construction Leadership Council co-chair Mark Reynolds has revealed the ǿմý Safety Regulator (BSR) wants to get the gateway 2 approvals process down to just five weeks in the future.
He told peers at an oral evidence session in Parliament this morning that the initial target was 13 weeks – with most gateway 2 approvals currently taking more than double this time.
But he added that following a series of conversations with the BSR in the past few weeks, plans were underway to eventually bring the gateway 2 approvals process down by a significant amount.
He said: “They [BSR] are looking to engage the fire consultants in a different way to reduce that process. That would take that down from 13 weeks to eight weeks. They’ve got a more radical process to get down to five weeks but that’s a long way off.
“If we we can get down to 13 weeks that would be a huge, huge step forward.”
Reynolds was appearing at the ongoing inquiry being carried out by the House of Lords into the gateway approval delays at the ǿմý Safety Regulator.
He said government and the industry needed to work better together in the future. “If government go off behind closed doors and write regulations that can’t be implemented, it’s just going to impose delays and slow things down.”
The CLC is also talking to the BSR about what amount of detail is required at gateway 2 stage and Reynolds admitted: “The level of detail asked at gateway 2 is beyond the capability of the system [the industry works in].”
He added: “It’s about interpretation of what’s really needed [at gateway 2]. If the regulations say we need everything, it’s going to cause a problem for delivery.”
>> See also: Is the government’s ǿմý Safety Regulator shake-up enough to fix the delays?
And he suggested that if the approvals process did not move to an “account management by organisation” approach – which would see schemes by developers bundled up for approval – then industry “will not be able to deliver at capacity”.
Last week, the government unveiled a major shake-up of the ǿմý Safety Regulator (BSR) amid mounting concern over delays to approval of high-rise residential schemes.
The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) announced it was setting up a new board to take over the functions of the BSR from the Health & Safety Executive.
MHCLG also announced it will introduce a new “fast-track process” to speed up approvals through the new building safety system.
More on the gateway 2 delays
ǿմý safety sign-off problems spooking investors, Quintain boss tells Lords
The housing sector needs a ǿմý Safety Regulator that is fit for purpose
ǿմý Safety Regulator considering taking ‘firmer approach’ to bad gateway 2 submissions
What the delays at the ǿմý Safety Regulator mean for high-rise development
Homes England boss calls on government to fix ‘unacceptably slow’ gateway 2 approval
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