Safer Buildings Taskforce
The Safer Buildings Taskforce was established by the Honourable Mick de Brenni MP, Minister for Housing and Public Works, Minister for Digital Technology and Minister for Sport in October 2019 and is a dedicated taskforce with a focus on delivering the necessary policy and practice to ensure the safety of Queensland’s building infrastructure is maintained.
The Taskforce is led by an independent Chair, Mr Peter Koutsoukis, and comprises representatives from the:
- Department of Energy and Public Works
- Queensland Fire and Emergency Services
- Queensland Building and Construction Commission
- Board of Professional Engineers of Queensland.
The work of the Taskforce is overseen by the Safer Buildings Inter-Departmental Committee.
The Taskforce continues to build on the work of the former Non-Conforming Building Products Audit Taskforce (NCBPA Taskforce). The work of the NCBPA Taskforce is summarised in its Non-Conforming Building Products Audit Taskforce Status Report (PDF, 3625.89 KB) which was tabled in the Queensland Parliament on 17 May 2018.
The purpose of the Taskforce is to identify and make recommendations to government on 2 key issues:
- Provide insight, advice and guidance about remediation of private affected buildings affected by combustible cladding as these buildings move into Part 3 of the Combustible Cladding Checklist. This part is set to run until 3 May 2021.
- Further advance Queensland as the nation’s leader in implementing recommendations from the Building Confidence Report.
The work of the Taskforce is guided by its Terms of Reference (PDF, 87.22 KB). The Terms of Reference for the Taskforce expand these 2 key issues into 12 priorities.
Further information on some of the priorities is detailed below:
- Implementing recommendations from the Building Confidence Report
- Professional indemnity insurance for building certifiers and building practitioners
- Rectification costs
- Relationships with key stakeholders
- Combustible cladding
Implementing recommendations from the Building Confidence Report
The Building Ministers’ Forum (BMF) requested an expert assessment of the effectiveness of compliance and enforcement systems for the building and construction industry.
The BMF appointed Professor Peter Shergold AC and Ms Bronwyn Weir to co-lead the assessment and their report provides a package of reforms to establish a national best practice model for compliance and enforcement.
The Taskforce has been asked to provide advice to Minister de Brenni on the implementation of recommendations from the Building Confidence Report (BCR) identified by the BMF to be priorities, specifically recommendations 1, 2, 9, 11 and 13. The Taskforce also chose to consider recommendations 5, 10, 16 and 17.
The Taskforce will consider the issues and finalise options for consideration.
Professional indemnity insurance for building certifiers and building practitioners
One of the key priorities of the Taskforce is to report to Minister de Brenni with options and recommendations to address the decline in availability and affordability of professional indemnity (PI) insurance for building certifiers and building practitioners.
The Taskforce is developing options based on themes consistently identified during consultation with key stakeholders, consideration of existing reports and work conducted in Queensland as well as Nationally. This review draws on many other aspects of the Taskforce Terms of Reference, including responding to the Building Confidence Report and the need for better communication and engagement to return confidence to the building industry.
Rectification costs
Pursuant to its Terms of Reference, the Taskforce is formulating advice to Minister de Brenni on a framework to assist building owners, both public and private to actively pursue avenues available to recover costs from parties that have contributed to building defects. It is expected that this advice will be finalised shortly.
Relationships with key stakeholders
At the direction of Minister de Brenni, the Taskforce has consulted widely with a significant number of stakeholders, both internal and external to government. The purpose of this engagement is to ensure their views are listened to and considered in the deliberations and decisions of the Taskforce.
Industry participants are encouraged to contact the Taskforce to ask questions, convey opinions or provide the Taskforce with information that may assist in the fulfilment of its purpose.
Combustible cladding
On 1 October 2018, the Building and Other Legislation (Cladding) Amendment Regulation 2018 came into effect compelling the owners of certain private buildings to complete a combustible cladding checklist to determine the type of cladding material used on their building and whether any further assessment is required. To support the regulation, a dedicated Safer Buildings website (hosted by the QBCC) has been established.
A Guideline (PDF, 1720.53 KB) is available to provide owners of particular private buildings, building industry professionals and fire engineers with information on how to meet their respective obligations under the regulation to complete the combustible cladding checklist. This information supplements and extends the guidance information available on the Safer Buildings website.
Building owners that progress to Part 3 of the combustible cladding checklist need to seek the services of a fire engineer. In some cases, the fire engineer may identify that short-term risk mitigation and cladding rectification work may be necessary.
For more information read the Safer Buildings for Queensland summary (PDF, 608.02 KB) or contact the QBCC on 139 333.
The Taskforce will continue to:
- oversee the ongoing assessment and rectification of combustible cladding materials. This is to include reviewing the availability and quality of safer buildings program data.
- provide advice to the Minister on the need for a legislative framework to compel rectification of buildings affected with combustible cladding if necessary.
Schedule of notified government building sites with confirmed combustible external cladding
The Queensland Government has been dealing with the issue of potentially combustible cladding since the inception of the former Audit Taskforce in June 2017. The Princess Alexandra Hospital was the first government-owned building found to contain combustible external cladding.
The following list represents a summary of government owned building sites where some rectification is required as a result of the government cladding investigations.
It is important to understand that these facilities are deemed safe to occupy whilst remedial works are being undertaken.
Interim risk mitigation measures have commenced with staff and building occupants notified. The facility is subject to potentially modified Queensland Fire and Emergency Services (QFES) response. Where rectification works have been completed to the satisfaction of a specialist fire engineer, such facilities will be removed from the schedule of notified government building sites.
It is the government’s priority to ensure the health, safety and wellbeing of Queensland residents and visitors where they live, work and visit.
List of sites as at 30 November 2021
Sites which include an * indicate partial rectification (i.e. some buildings located at the site are complete).
| Sites | Asset Owner |
|---|---|
| Cairns Hospital* | Queensland Health |
| Logan Hospital* | Queensland Health |
| Mackay Hospital* | Queensland Health |
| Robina Hospital* | Queensland Health |
| John Tonge Forensic Centre* | Queensland Health |
| Ascot State School* | Department of Education |
| Brisbane Port Authority | Brisbane Port Authority |
| Carseldine Government Precinct | Department of Energy and Public Works |
| Ecosciences Precinct Building | Department of Energy and Public Works |
| Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre | Southbank Corporation |
| Gallery of Modern Art | Arts Queensland |
| Brisbane Entertainment Centre | Stadiums Queensland |
| Metricon Stadium | Stadiums Queensland |
| Queensland Sports and Athletics Centre* | Stadiums Queensland |
| Cairns Convention Centre | Department of Energy and Public Works |
| Mike Ahern Building | Department of Energy and Public Works |
| Mount Isa Hospital* | Queensland Health |
| Northlakes Health Precinct | Queensland Health |
| Townsville Hospital* | Queensland Health |
| Queensland Children’s Hospital | Queensland Health |
| State Library | Arts Queensland |
| Queensland Museum | Arts Queensland |
| Ipswich Courthouse | Department of Justice and Attorney-General |
| RBWH Busway Station | Department of Transport and Main Roads |
| Powerlink Virginia Complex | Powerlink |
| Runaway Bay Sport and Leadership Excellence Centre | Department of Education |
| Queensland Theatre Company | Department of Energy and Public Works |
| William McCormack Place | Department of Energy and Public Works |
| Queensland Institute of Medical Research RBWH Campus | Queensland Institute of Medical Research |
| Queensland State Archives* | Department of Energy and Public Works |
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- Last updated:
- 8 December 2021