Chris Penk: Building and Construction Minister on building decisions delayed

The building consents process is taking too long, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk has said. 

Applications are supposed to be processed within 20 working days, but numbers out today show 66% of the time it takes longer than that. 

Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk talks to Ryan Bridge about what needs to change.  

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
The Construction Minister says the consenting process is taking way
too long. Consenting applications are meant to be processed within
twenty working days, and anyone who's built a house or
had any kind of construction work done knows that that
is a pipe dream. New numbers out today show it's
taking longer than that sixty six percent of the time.
In other words, two thirds of applications are taking too long.

(00:22):
Chris Penk's the minister. He's with me now, High Minister.

Speaker 2 (00:25):
Fascinating.

Speaker 1 (00:26):
So two thirds of applications taking longer than they should
and they're doing this by using a request for information.
What exactly is that?

Speaker 2 (00:35):
Yeah, that's when the council says to the builder or
the trades person, look, we think there's something wrong. What
does this mean You've forgotten that or you need to
add that in or whatever the case may be. And
you know, in some cases it will evitably be the
case that there might be a problem. But two thirds
of the time, you know, ninety thousand of leagues across
a year, that surely can't be right. So certainly, and

(00:56):
it goes to lead in terms of builders and tradees
and designers. Okay, look councils being really risk averse, and
these good reasons for that, but you know, we need
to sort this out. It just cost them way too.

Speaker 1 (01:06):
Much because what happens is once they do that request
for information, the clock stops again, right, so it starts again,
so they can they can take longer.

Speaker 2 (01:13):
Yeah, that's right. And there's certainly a lot of cynicism
out there when people say that they've got a content
application in the nineteenth or the twentieth day and low
and become would they get the RFA this quest of
further information and they feel as though councils playing for time.
You know. The council's on the other hand, would say
that are busy and they're just trying to get to
what they can get to. But we should all be

(01:34):
very fearful, you know, if this is what we've got
going on when the system is pretty light in terms
of workloads, in terms of activity, and we want there
to be more building activity. We know they've been a
lull having goodness knows the timings are really going to
blow out when when ad activity and creditors to see.

Speaker 1 (01:49):
So how do you fix it without potentially compromising and
safety or another leaky building.

Speaker 2 (01:56):
Yeah, a lot of very good question and it's a balance.
We're going to train get right and part of the
arts lecture to be a bit more hands off where
there are experienced builders who've got a good track record,
they've got insurance, they're solvent. They're not going to cause
industry for the vulnerable homeowner or other building owner in
walk away and leaves him in the lurch. And that
means council aren't involved. Because we allow these guys to

(02:19):
do the work without actually needing that content in the
first place, the council can actually spend more of their
resources and their time and actually respond more quickly, whether
building types or less experienced builders and trades people who
actually need that greater scrutiny. So we think it's going
to be more of a their life.

Speaker 1 (02:36):
When are we going to see this enacted, Yeah, I.

Speaker 2 (02:39):
Think I mean certainly the first half of this year,
so the final decisions.

Speaker 1 (02:45):
So people, there'll be builders and there'll be people who
are having worked done on their homes. Minister, he'll be
very happy to hear that, very happy indeed, I know.
But Barry Sober will be one of them, having just
had him in the studio winging about the problem he's
had lately. Chris pink is the building construction Minister. Thanks
for being on the show. For more from Hither Duplessy,
Allen Drive, listen live to news talks it'd be from

(03:08):
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