Chris Penk: Building and Construction Minister on the changes to the insulation rules

The Building and Construction Minister's confident changes to insulation rules will give builders and designers more flexibility. 

Chris Penk's proposed changes to reduce building costs, including examining the whole building instead of individual components. 

Penk told Andrew Dickens he believes there's currently too many regulations. 

He says when you add up the extra costs, it does become significant. 

LISTEN ABOVE 

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
The government has backtracked and decided not to roll back
the new insulation standards that were introduced last year. Construction
Minister Chris Penk has announced a review of the H
one standards after this is an insulation the H one
standards after reports came out that told them that it
may building a new house cost forty to fifty thousand

(00:20):
dollars more, there was backlash from the industry. The ministry
is now going to go back to the standards and
just make some slight changes to them and trying to
get everybody on board. Minister for Building and Construction Chris
Penk joins me, Now, hello, Chris, and how are you good.
It's going to be tough to actually to fight these
regulations they seem ingrained.

Speaker 2 (00:42):
Well, I think the point is that we need a
sensible level of regulation. Usually that means we need less
red tape and green tape, but actually there are ways
that we can be sensible about the way that we
have people meet the requirements that actually can reduce costs
but also end ut with that good result of a
sensible level of insulation. And so I think we're going
to end up in a good space on this.

Speaker 1 (01:02):
So when you came along to the insulation industry and said, look,
this is crazy, we need to rationalize this. What did
they say.

Speaker 2 (01:07):
Back to you, Well, I mean there are a number
of different views out there. I mean, certainly for people
who sell insulation for a living, obviously they had a
particular view and sold the advocates, who you know, for
all the right reasons, end with good intentions, always advocate
for more insulation, not less as a mandated requirement, but
certainly for homeowners who are feed up with paying massively

(01:29):
increasing construction costs and those who are not homeowners that
would like to be and facing those Thereas you know,
there was a interviews of taking those all into account
and as I say, I think if we can, you know,
make everyone happy by having a good standard but ensuring
that to be meet in a way that more flexiboord
them have got currently, then everyone will be happy.

Speaker 1 (01:50):
That's the word flexible. And I believe your attitude is
let's look at the entire building, let's look at the
whole thing rather than worrying about each individual component.

Speaker 2 (02:00):
Well, that's exactly right, and to be fair, the rules
do currently allow for that. And there's a modeling method
which is pretty much worts down, but you can model
what the missions are going to be and the us
the efficiency is going to be taking the building as
a whole. And then you've got a calculation method which
is similar but a bit more basic. But the thing

(02:20):
that we're getting or looking to get wrong, and I
should emphasize actually the public consultation now, but certainly I'm
interested in getting rid of a suital method, which is
a really proscriptive approach where the roof in the wolves
in the four all has to have a minimum level
of insulation and it sort of locks in and having
you know, probably as a result that that's more than

(02:44):
is required in each of those components in the thought overall.
And of course what that does is pushing up the
cost a lot. And it's before you get into, you know,
some of the concerns about lack of the equation.

Speaker 1 (02:55):
But it's going to be a tough war. Did you
see the Richard Prebble noted in a recent column that
there's two and three hundred pages of new regulations enacted
in the last financial year end of June thirtieth, and
you were there. David Seymour has got a red tape
ministry they found out the other day that there's too
much red tape in their own red tape ministry. This,
this is a this is a this is a huge
problem for you to try and stamp out. It's like

(03:17):
I say, it's ingrained in our psyche. Regulate, regulate, regulate, regulate.

Speaker 2 (03:23):
Yeah it is, You're you're absolutely right. It is ingrained
a little bit in the psyche, certainly in the Wellington
where I've headed now. And and you know, the danger
is that we overregulate. Was the best of intention then
a little bit extra here, a little bit extra there.
You know, people say to me, oh, Chris, it's only
an extra fifteen funeral two thousand dollars on top of

(03:44):
the house price for over you but the editor up
and it does become significant.

Speaker 1 (03:49):
How do you eat an elephant, Chris? How do you
eat an elephant? One bite at a time? And I
understand that, and I thank you so much for your time.
That is Chris Pink. For more from Early Edition with
Ryan Bridge, listen live to News Talk It'd be from
five am weekdays, or follow the podcast on iHeartRadio.