The government has been urged to make a quick decision on delaying the introduction of a new post-Brexit quality mark for construction products.
Earlier this week, the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy announced a two-year delay for most products to the introduction of the UKCA mark, which had been due to come into force from 1 January.
However, the statement said different rules would apply to some types of products, including those used in the construction industry. Decisions on the future of the regime would be left with the relevant department, it added.
Peter Caplehorn, chief executive of the Construction Products Association, said: “We are not out of the woods yet.
“The status quo is not certain, and for construction-product manufacturers and the wider construction industry to prepare for any impending policy changes, the government must expedite its decision on this critical issue for our sector.
“The year-end is fast approaching, and parliament will recess on 21 December, leaving very little time for the government to enact the necessary legislation to make the policy and its deadline a reality.”
He added that, even if the delay to the UKCA mark’s introduction was pushed through quickly, the sector would still meet with problems regardless of a revised deadline.
Caplethorn said the industry faced “the increasingly difficult process through next year to retest and recertify new products where few or no UK facilities exist to achieve this”.
He called on ministers to reconsider the usefulness of the UKCA and “whether a more reasonable, practical solution exists to help achieve the right aims but avoid further and unnecessary loss of time, money and resources”.
A statement from the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities – the department with responsibility for construction products – said: “We are considering our approach in relation to CE marking of construction products and will be sharing details in due course.”
In September, Construction News highlighted widespread concern in the sector about the change to the new quality-mark regime.
Sarah Colwell, head of technical codes and standards at independent advisory, testing and training body BRE Group – one of the 48 approved bodies for UKCA construction-product certification – said the organisation had seen its workload soar due to the markings switch, including from businesses based across the English Channel.
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