Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

EWS1 Forms

Monday 29 November 2021 · 2 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 0 Partly answered 2 Not answered 0

Key points

  • Ministerial Department agrees EWS1 forms should not be required for buildings under 18 metres in height.
  • Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors has issued guidance on when EWS1 forms are necessary.
  • Commitment to a state-backed professional indemnity insurance scheme for professionals remains in place.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Margaret Ferrier SNP
Housing Environment
Context

The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors issued guidance on EWS1 forms, which is causing concerns about barriers to home sales. The question aims to address these issues.

Question

What steps his Department is taking to help ensure that the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors' guidance on EWS1 forms is not a barrier to people selling their homes?

Answer from Christopher Pincher

The Government agree with the independent review of fire safety that EWS1 forms should not be required on buildings under the height of 18 metres. The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors has issued guidance to professionals, as the hon. Lady will know, on when EWS1 forms are required. That is being reviewed following the independent expert group's statement.

Partly answered

Not addressed: Specific steps and timeline for reviewing and addressing the RICS guidance were not provided.

Was this summary accurate? Tell us

How accurate was this summary? (1 = poor, 5 = spot on)

Q2 Margaret Ferrier SNP
Housing
Context

The former Housing Secretary announced a five-point plan including a state-backed professional indemnity insurance scheme, but this has not materialised yet. The question seeks an update on the timeline.

Question

In February, the former Housing Secretary announced his five-point plan to bring confidence to the housing market, committing to a state-backed professional indemnity insurance scheme for professionals. We still have not seen the scheme materialise, so will the Minister provide an update today on when that scheme will become available?

Answer from Christopher Pincher

The hon. Lady is quite right. We made that commitment and we adhere to it in the narrow circumstances that are required to give fire risk assessment assurers confidence that PII ought to apply. We believe that, collectively, the associated facts of the Fire Safety Act 2021 and the fire safety order, the withdrawal of consolidated advice note PAS9980, and the introduction of British Standards Institution standards, will ensure a much clearer approach to the sorts of challenges that she outlines.

Partly answered

Not addressed: A commitment was made but no specific timeline or details about when the PII scheme will be available were provided.

Was this summary accurate? Tell us

How accurate was this summary? (1 = poor, 5 = spot on)