TOUGHER ENFORCEMENT of building regulations backed by independent inspections could help avoid situations like the one that forced 187 families out of an apartment complex this week.

Residents had to move out of Priory Hall in Dublin because the building is a serious fire risk and has serious structural faults.

The Society of Chartered Surveyors in Ireland said yesterday the Government should introduce laws to ensure building regulations are strictly enforced and that an independent inspector is appointed to construction projects to ensure full compliance.

Prof Malcolm Hollis, a leading authority on building safety in Britain, who addressed the society’s conference yesterday, said a key issue appears to be the lack of independent assessments of design and detailed checks on building work.

“It appears that the lack of legislation requiring mandatory inspections and enforcement in Ireland has resulted in cases where new construction did not achieve the required standards,” he said. He pointed out that building regulations are there to protect occupiers’ lives and health.

The society said the Department of the Environment should ensure enough resources to significantly increase the number of inspections carried out. Currently, between 10 per cent and 15 per cent of developments are inspected. Its president, John Curtin, warned it is crucial that local authorities appoint qualified professionals to ensure all building is done to the required standard.

“The society recommends that the public service embargo is relaxed for local authorities in these special cases,” he said. Speaking at the conference yesterday, Mr Curtin said the State could make considerable savings if it were to establish a register of all public sector-held properties. “After employee costs, property is one of the largest public sector costs,” he said. “Such a register would be the first step in quantifying the State property portfolio and could help to deliver cost efficiencies in terms of its maintenance and management.”