Private certifiers will be at the centre of an inquiry into the building industry after a series of defects left homeowners thousands of dollars out-of-pocket. 

The defects of the Opal and Mascot towers have led to concerns over the regulation of industrial standards in the last 15 years.

Now, surveyors, certifiers and architects are struggling to get professional indemnity insurance as insurers flee from a market they deem high-risk.

NSW Greens MP David Shoebridge is part of the parliamentary inquiry into building defects around the state.

He tells John Stanley there needs to be a joint solution.

“Neither of the major parties wants to get in the way of development, at any cost, but I think now we are seeing very clearly how the lax enforcement of building standards isn’t just some sort of technical political matter, it’s actually destroying people’s lives.

“We need a kind of statewide bailout. Some kind of scheme that’s going to fairly share this burden… across the development industry and state government, who’s been asleep at the wheel on this, needs to put its hand up and accept some of the responsibility.

“It’s a horribly complex knot of private certification, inadequate insurance, inadequate state oversight, all joining together into what has become a really toxic bomb in the development industry.”

Click PLAY to hear the full interview

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