The Minister of Public Works and Infrastructure, Dean Macpherson, has vowed to introduce a number of legislative reforms to avoid a repeat of the tragic George building collapse that claimed the lives of 34 people and injured 28 people.
The Minister made this assertion during a media briefing on Saturday where he released the findings of investigative reports into the George building collapse of 6 May 2024, which found that the incident was preventable and was a result of a lethal convergence of failures.
The apartment building collapsed while under construction in George on 75 Victoria Street in the Western Cape on 6 May 2024.
READ | Minister Macpherson speaks on George building collapse
“Our legislative framework is outdated. The National Building Regulations and Building Standards Act was last meaningfully amended in 1996. The built environment has changed. Our laws have not.
“We will introduce a revised Council for the Built Environment Bill in Parliament. This Bill will give the Council for the Built Environment (CBE) stronger investigative powers, consolidate regulatory functions, and establish it as a single, more effective regulator for the built environment,” the Minister said.
The CEB is a regulatory body of the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure, established under the Council for the Built Environment Act (No. 43 of 2000) (the CBE Act).
It was established for the purpose of instilling good conduct within built environment professions, mobilising transformation in the built environment professions, protecting the interest of the public and advising the South African Government on built environment related issues.
“The CBE will establish a reporting protocol that mandates the registration of any structural system failure. A hotline will be launched to allow workers, built environment practitioners and professionals, or members of the public to anonymously raise safety concerns. These reports will trigger automatic inspections and, where necessary, emergency site shutdowns,” the Minister said.
Credentialing scheme
The department will introduce a national credentialing scheme for built environment professionals, that will distinguish the specialised skill set from the generalist who are already professionally registered.
“In the immediate, the first will be to address structural engineers working on high-risk buildings. It will no longer be enough to simply be professionally registered.
“Engineers will need to prove their competence for complex projects, just like pilots or surgeons,” the Minister said.
He emphasised that the collapse of the George building calls for a legislative review of the National Building Regulations.
This will include alignment with new technologies, climate resilience standards, and 21st-century construction practices such as Building Information Modelling.
“We cannot regulate 2025 buildings with 1996 legislation. The NHBRC [National Home Builders Registration Council], municipalities, the Department of Labour, and other entities will be required by law to share inspection data and site conditions with one another. No single authority should be able to proceed blindly. Integration is essential,” the Minister stressed.
Amendments
In partnership with the Department of Labour and Employment, the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure will propose amendments to the Construction Regulations under the Occupational Health and Safety Act, to strengthen enforcement and accountability of all duty holders: clients, designers, and contractors alike.
The reform will be implemented in three phases as follows:
• Phase One from 2025 to 2026: Immediate interventions, including new regulations, mandatory standards and emergency protocols.
• Phase Two from 2026 to 2028: Implementation of long-term reform, including legislative amendments and competency-based registration systems.
• Phase Three from 2028 onwards: Institutional consolidation and relocation of custodianship of building regulations functions and standards to the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure.
-SAnews.gov.za
