The drafting and publication of the General Scheme of the Building Control (Construction Industry Register Ireland) (CIRI) Bill 2017 has been approved by the Government.

The purpose of the Bill is to provide for a mandatory statutory register of builders, contractors and specialist sub-contractors, and subject to a limited number of exceptions, a builder will only be permitted to carry out building works in respect of which he or she is registered.

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The CIRI has been operated by the Construction Industry Federation as a voluntary register since March 2014 and the Government committed to placing the register on a statutory footing in the Action Plan for Jobs and Construction 2020.

The establishment of CIRI as a mandatory statutory register is seen as an essential consumer protection measure which will give consumers who engage a registered builder the assurance that they are dealing with a competent and compliant operator. It will also provide a forum for the investigation of complaints against registered members and the imposition of proportionate sanctions.

(CD/LM)