Membership of the FMB means you have a voice in Government. Our team is speaking up for Master Builders on the issues that matter the most to you. Here’s some of what we have been up to this month.
Material price increases
We’ve taken the following action to highlight the difficulties this has created to the Government and consumers:
- The FMB has used our relationships in Government to raise the issue. This includes a briefing for the UK Housing Minister; correspondence with the Construction Minister; and meetings with officials at the Ministry of Housing and Homes England.
- We have used Parliament to get material shortages on the political agenda. Sir Desmond Swayne MP (Conservative) used question time to raise this issue with the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy. Fleur Anderson MP (Labour) tabled written questions on our behalf asking what steps Government is taking to address the national shortage of building materials (see image below).
- The FMB has been named in questions to Scottish Parliament on the issue.
- We’ve also added our voice to calls for hauliers to be placed on the shortage occupation list, to ease the delivery of building materials.
For more information on the FMB’s response to the material shortages and support for members, please see our material shortages campaigns page.
Working to create a safer, more professional, building industry
The FMB is committed to raising standards in the building industry.
We’re currently working in the following ways to promote and increase professionalism and safety throughout the construction sector:
- The FMB’s Licensing Task Force met June to discuss the next steps in the campaign for a licensing system for UK construction. We have been working with Conservative MP Mark Garnier, who will bring the proposals to Parliament for debate later this year.
- We have been working within HSE’s Construction Industry’s Advisory Committee’s (CONIAC) Supporting Small Employers subgroup to develop strategies and resources to support builders’ knowledge of asbestos.
- FMB Scotland are members of the Building Standards Division Futures Board. The Board was set up to advise on and improve the performance, expertise, resilience, and sustainability of the Scottish building standards services across Scotland.
For more information on the FMB’s licensing campaign, please see our licence UK construction campaigns page.
Supporting local house builders
Local house builders are key to designing high-quality housing that supports the needs of local communities and areas.
To support local house builders in their efforts, the FMB has:
- Given evidence to the Bacon Review on creating more self and custom-build opportunities.
- We jointly wrote to the UK Housing Minister regarding the impact of policies on nutrient neutrality on SME house builders in some parts of the country.
- FMB Cymru has been invited to sit on the Welsh Government group that will oversee discussions and propose solutions to the impact of new phosphate targets in rivers and the impact this has on house building in certain parts of Wales.
- FMB Cymru has also been meeting with Welsh Government officials to discuss proposed new standards for new homes. Get in touch with [email protected] to take part.
- FMB Northern Ireland is part of an industry working group lead by Lloyds Banking focusing on Housing Supply and how to increase the role of local builders in delivering new homes. Member comments are appreciated for either paper and should be sent to [email protected].
For more information on the FMB’s advocacy for local house builders, please see our SME house building campaigns page.
If you have questions regarding any of our campaigns, please get in touch with [email protected].
