Master Builders Victoria is concerned that today’s media release by Minister for Planning, Richard Wynne (‘Standing Up for Combustible Cladding Owners in Victoria’) is an oversimplified attempt to apportion blame for Victoria’s cladding issues.

CEO Rebecca Casson says she’s concerned that the quotes attributed to the Minister seem to overlook that there were more than just builders involved.

“We have always said that if practitioners of any kind have done the wrong thing, then clearly they should be held accountable and we continue to support the government’s commitment to pursuing those who have let our community down.”

“However, the reality is that there have been failings for many years, by a range of stakeholders, from the failure of governments to act on known risks with cladding to past industry regulators with a lack of appropriate oversight of the industry,” she says.

“We are all wiser with hindsight and we have been pleased to see various elements of our industry demonstrate an increased commitment to improve standards and practices, while we work through the current challenges of identifying and rectifying buildings with potentially combustible cladding.”

“As an organisation, we are certainly not walking away from our responsibilities. We strongly believe that this issue can only be best resolved with a collaborative ‘all of industry’ approach that keeps everyone involved accountable.”

“The wording of today’s Victorian government announcement, however, appears to be a disappointing step away from an all-of-industry solution,” she says.

“The finger pointing must cease; it is neither helpful nor warranted.”