Reforming the Construction Products Regime: Green Paper

The Background

The government recently published its official response to the Grenfell Tower Inquiry Phase 2 Report, addressing all 58 recommendations and outlining the government’s proposed reforms. As part of its response, the government also published the Construction Products Reform Green Paper (the Paper), which proposes extensive measures for system-wide reform of the construction product regulatory regime, including proposals that address the Inquiry’s recommendations. The Paper also serves as the government’s response to the Independent Review of Product Testing and Certification (the Morrell-Day Review), published back in April 2023. In a nutshell, it sets out the vision and proposals for creating a completely updated system for regulating construction products.

The Paper is the next step in the government’s response to the Grenfell Tower tragedy and a vital one, as construction products are central to the infrastructure and safety of a building.

The Proposed Reforms

The Paper proposes 11 reforms in total, including:

• Regulatory coverage in the Construction Products Regulation (the CPR) to refer to a much-broadened definition of a construction product based on the product’s intended use, rather than those that are subject to technical standards, which will lead to a threefold increase in the number of products which are subject to the regulatory regime;
• Life and safety of building users – the current regime is intended for a level playing field and does not have safety or environmental protection as its drivers, whereas the updated regime addresses safety, carbon emissions, energy efficiency and sustainability by encouraging circularity and re-use;
• Establishing a construction library for data on construction products that are placed on the market;
• The implementation of oversight on testing and certification of construction products and changing the licensing of conformity assessment bodies, or CABs;
• Ensuring consistency between the UK’s regulatory framework & the revised EU framework (the EU CPR), potentially leading to the use of Digital Product Passports (DPPs) to mirror the new EU laws on construction products regulation;
• Enhanced enforcement mechanisms for the national regulator, such as the ability to impose sanctions and conduct proactive market inspection;
• Increasing penalties, such as unlimited fines & prison sentences for directors;
• Appointing a single construction regulator.

These are wide-ranging and ambitious proposed reforms. We have focused on three key proposals for the purpose of this article.

Firstly, the introduction of a risk-based general safety requirement for all construction products. Under the current regime only products that fall within the scope of a designated standard are covered by the CPR. This accounts for roughly one-third of all construction products on the market, leaving an estimated 20-30,000 products outside the scope of regulatory oversight. The proposed reform seeks to close this gap by extending safety requirements to the entire construction product landscape, regardless of whether a designated standard exists. As such, manufacturers will be responsible for assessing the safety of their products before placing them on the market. Where there are existing standards or technical assessments required for construction products, such as smoke alarm devices and pre-cast concrete products, these products must continue to comply with those standards.

The Paper also considers and seeks views on how consistency between the UK’s regulatory framework and the EU CPR can be ensured to support trade. Within the Paper, the government states that “many of our objectives for reform are mirrored in the revised EU-CPR’s objectives.” For example, it explores the concept of digital labels, potentially modelled on DPPs, which are digital information stores that make information on a product’s manufacture and intended use easily accessible for users, regulators and the supply chain via a mechanism such as a QR code. It also considers adopting several definitions from the EU CPR, including “the Construction Product”.

Originally proposed in the Morrell-Day Review, the Paper agrees with the proposal to establish a “construction library” that will serve as a repository for vital information in relation to construction products. The construction library will include data from tests on products and materials to support those who design buildings. Manufacturers would be responsible for making the test results available to all parties. The Paper further proposes the construction library could also host information such as “Declarations of Performance and fire safety reports and academic reports along with their recommendations”, as it sees it as a helpful tool that can be expanded for further use.

Lastly to highlight briefly here, the regulatory enforcement of construction products is being overhauled, including the appointment of a single construction regulator for the construction sector, with a broader and more powerful ability to proactively investigate compliance and with increased fines where liability is established. In the meantime, the Office of Product Safety and Standards (the OPSS) will continue to enforce the legal obligations, having taken over many of the historical duties and powers from Local Authorities in this regard.

It is likely that implementation of such changes will take a long time, with much engagement needed between the government and the industry to ensure a safe and workable system that fosters product safety in the construction industry.

The Consultation

A formal consultation on the reform proposals is being run by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (the MHCLG). Five key sector groups have been identified as critical to supporting the vision for reform. These are named as construction product manufacturers, the construction industry and supply chains, the National Quality Infrastructure, regulators and the government. However, the consultation is also intended to engage with a range of other stakeholders. The consultation will last for 12 weeks until 21 May 2025 and can be responded to here.

It seems the necessary changes will require significant and long-term effort from both government and industry.

References: Grenfell Tower Inquiry Phase 2 Report: Government response, Construction Products Reform Green Paper, Independent Review of the Construction Product Testing Regime.

Co-authored by Eleanor Addinall, Trainee Solicitor at CMS.