The construction industry RT has issued its opinion on the changes to the Construction Act proposed by the Ministry of the Environment. Based on the proposals, the Construction Act will, in RT's opinion, be more effective, more functional and less bureaucratic. However, changes are still needed, especially for low-carbon regulation.
In RT's opinion, the proposed changes included in the so-called correction series of the Construction Act are largely justified. The original construction law, approved in March 2023, had several shortcomings, which faced strong criticism from both stakeholders and the parliament during the consideration of the bill. These problems have now been corrected in accordance with the current government program.
"We consider it very important that the construction act was amended before it comes into force. The changes improve the law in many respects and do not increase regulation", Anu Kärkkäinen toteaa.
RT supports, among other things, the following changes included in the repair kit:
- 3-month deadline for construction permit processing and the penalties for missing the deadline increase the predictability of the permit process
- Coming into law as a new law clean transition industry investment permit facilitates the approval of projects supporting the green transition
- Proposed changes for applying for a building permit make it easier to apply for a permit as a whole
- Limitation of appeal rights of what is presented in the Construction Act, makes the permit process more efficient
- Easing the demolition conditions for non-protected buildings reduce bureaucracy and speed up the renewal of the urban structure in planned areas
Proposed the new provision concerning the principal responsible implementer would significantly add uncertainty to the content of the agreements and their interpretation. For this reason, RT primarily proposes that the section on the responsibility of the principal contractor with its justifications and other references to the principal contractor be completely deleted from the Construction Act. If the section is not removed from the law, as a second option, RT presents clarifications to the law.
RT's proposals for low-carbon regulation: removing the carbon footprint and carbon footprint reporting for the final review
The construction industry is committed to climate goals and sees it as essential that the law is also functional in terms of low-carbon regulation. As new necessary changes, RT proposes that the carbon footprint be removed from the law and the carbon footprint be reported before the final inspection and not in connection with the construction permit. The carbon footprint calculation method is not sufficiently clear and standardized to be applicable as part of legislation and steer in the right direction in terms of climate goals.
Our proposal would produce more verifiable results from the carbon footprint and promote reaching the climate goals more effectively. The information about the materials in the construction permit phase is still preliminary and contains a lot of uncertainties. In the implementation phase, instead, the information is based on actual products and quantities and thus provides a more reliable basis for evaluating the carbon footprint. The carbon footprint should fall below the limit set for the building, and any excesses would be sanctioned.
We support the proposed amendment to the section on low carbon, according to which the requirement to make a carbon footprint calculation is removed from renovation construction and detached houses.
The Ministry of the Environment organized a round of opinions on the proposed changes to the Construction Act in early 2024. The opinion period ended on March 6, by which time no less than 225 opinions had been collected. The Ministry of the Environment's goal is still to have the changes in the law come into force from the beginning of 2025. The Construction Act was approved by Parliament on March 1.3.2023, XNUMX.
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Anu Kärkkäinen
Director, Economic Policy Affairs
anu.karkkainen@rt.fi + 358 50 337 6699Building Construction Industry Association