Current status: Answered by Patrick Harvie on 27 April 2023
To ask the Scottish Government what action it has taken to ensure that only accredited contractors carry out masonry repairs.
The Building (Scotland) Act 2003 gives powers to local authorities to take enforcement action where the building is defective or dangerous. When a local authority considers a building to be dangerous it has a duty to act and it is expected that it will respond immediately. This might include taking urgent action to carry out work, including demolition, as it considers necessary to reduce or remove the danger.
Where buildings are defective local authorities will consider what action is appropriate. The range of actions include serving a notice calling for work to be carried out to improve the quality of properties that are in disrepair, or doing the work in default of the owner complying with the notice.
There is no accreditation for contractors carrying out masonry repairs in Scotland. Each local authority will have its own methodology for selecting appropriate contractors to undertake the work required on a case by case basis.