Clarkson Bob: Building Amendment Bill — Second Reading 
Clarkson Bob: Building Amendment Bill — Second Reading 
[Volume:643;Page:13008] 
BOB CLARKSON (National—Tauranga) 
: 
 Let us start on the restricted building work. It was explained in the Social Services Committee that a simple building could be built by a DIY builder. That builder would not have to be licensed and would not need a permit to build that building. It was mentioned in the preamble that a hay barn was listed as a simple type of building. Just to give an example a hay barn built in Matamata needs footings that are 1800 millimetres deep because of the high wind loading on the Matamata side of the Kaimais. These are the sorts of mistakes they are making. There should be a simple permit and at least one inspection for that sort of building. So there is the first mistake. Let us move on to the building of houses. If someone builds a house using the 3604 standards the house will be built in all timber framing and with timber floor beams. If there are no steel beams for example a design engineer is not needed to tick off the plans. The 3604 standards are considered to be simple standards. To meet a simple construction I asked the chief executive of the Department of Building and Housing in the select committee whether a 3604 standard was a simple standard for a simple building and she said that yes it was. She agreed that 3604 was a simple explanation of how to build a house. I am now confused. If those standards are simple that means a DIY builder can build a house because it is a simple building. So we have got more damn confusion. This is good news I think actually but however. 
This is the problem we get when someone wakes up in the morning with a warm fuzzy feeling and decides to change the rules. Practical people should get together and work out what is going to happen when we change these rules. It appears that the previous Minister did not get good advice from the right people. I say that practical people are the ones we should get advice from. 
I am sorry for the new Minister who will have to sort out this mess. The Labour Government has had four chances at getting the rules sorted out. It looks like there is going to be a mess again. I will give the Labour Government one credit: it is consistent in getting it wrong. 
I will now deal with the licensing carpenter section. Why are we doing this? At this stage only 3 percent of people are DIY builders in New Zealand. In most cases DIY builders do a good job. They read the 3604 standards and they follow the rules. When Australia brought in its licensing rules the number of DIY builders rose from 3 percent to 30 percent because the builders dodged joining the licensing system. We will end up with the same result in New Zealand. I thought a carpenter did a trade training course so that he or she would end up as a tradesman carpenter and effectively end up with a licence to build a house. 
Why do we need to make this system more bureaucratic? It will cost carpenters $600 a year minimum and they also have to do 20 hours of training each year. For example carpenters did not cause leaky homes so licensing carpenters will not solve leaky home problems. Forty-five percent of the leaks in leaky homes are around mitre joints and windows. That was not the carpenters’ problem. The type of cladding and timber used was recommended by the Building Industry Authority. That was not the carpenters’ fault. I say it again: licensing builders will not fix the problem. 
Ninety percent of the amendments have faults. Let us go back to practical people and sort this mess out. It is very easy to build a house that does not leak. The previous Minister for Building and Construction was attacking carpenter tradesmen. I say to that member that that is rubbish. I say it again: we do not need to license carpenters. I think anybody should be allowed to build a house. What we need is licensed building inspectors. The building inspector should be qualified or better qualified than any carpenter or builder on the site. Bad inspectors do poor inspections or in some cases no inspections which is one of the major causes of leaky homes. Let us get some practical rules and let us get rid of all this bureaucratic crap. We are going to end up with a massive bureaucratic problem— 
Eric Roy 
: Oh! 
BOB CLARKSON 
: Who is talking here? I say to that member that I am talking not him. We were hoping this bill would make it better. The bill also does nothing to improve home affordability. In fact it will drive up prices. Despite the Government’s argument that the original bill did not restrict DIY this bill further restricts those who could be considered DIY builders. I go back to our old friend Norman Kirk who built his own house. He would turn in his grave if he knew what those members over there were doing that is for sure. I look forward to sorting out this problem with the National Party. Nick Smith and myself will get it all sorted out and we will change the laws— 
Hon Parekura Horomia 
: You sold all those State houses Bob! 
BOB CLARKSON 
: I ask that member to keep quiet because I cannot think. I do not want carpenters to end up lying awake at night worrying about some new law that is coming in. I think the building industry is going through its darkest hour. There is light at the end of the tunnel.