CONSTRUCTION MANUALS FOR DWELLINGS (Hansard, 21 December 1983)

§ Mr. John Fraser
I beg to move, That the clause be read a Second time.
The proposition is almost self-evident—to make it an obligation on the builder to provide the purchaser of the new house with a manual which describes the dwelling. When one buys a new car one gets a manual, giving a wiring diagram, saying how many litres of petrol the vehicle holds, and telling the purchaser a few things about the servicing. If one buys a new house it is a different matter. I have had the experience of trying to put up shelves, only to find that there was a dry lining and that I did not have the right rawlplugs. As a result the shelves dropped off. If one starts to lay a carpet, one finds a smell of gas as one pierces a pipe. When one puts up the 508 Christmas decorations, all the lights go out as one pierces the lighting system. When there is a burst, one has no idea where the internal stopcock is. If one wants to do certain alterations, one suddenly runs into a timber frame that has been shielded by breeze blocks on one side and by traditional bricks on the other side. So it goes on.
It is ludicrous that when one makes the biggest purchase of one's life, buying a brand-new home, one has no plans or specifications or manual to describe the nature of the construction, the position of the services, the ability to take safety requirements, arid so forth. On the other hand, when one buys a car—I accept that it is not a statutory requirement, and it is no guarantee that it will work—one gets a manual that will say why the car is not working.
Thus, in my opinion, there is every justification for making it a requirement in the regulations to give the purchaser of a new dwelling a manual which describes the building, what it is made of, where the load-bearing walls are, what materials have been used in the construction, and where the services are situated. After all, plans have to he deposited with the building inspector, and a final certificate has to be lodged with the local authority. All we are asking is that building regulations should provide that a manual be handed to the purchaser, and a copy of it deposited with the local authority which will be available to future purchasers. What a brilliant idea it is, and I hope that the Government will accept it.

§ Mr. Sydney Chapman (Chipping Barnet)
May I briefly intervene to support what the hon. Member for Norwood (Mr. Fraser) has said?
I have much sympathy with the purpose of new clause 11, particularly with what it says about supply ing the occupier of the dwelling with a manual. It is extremely important. Incidentally, in knocking Christmas cards into the studded partition, I doubt whether any interpretation of the drawings would enable the hon. Gentleman accurately to pinpoint where the studding of the framework was. However, it would clearly be of inestimable help to an occupier to know the basic structure of the dwelling, the position of the utility services. and so on.
I am less sure whether there should be a requirement that a copy of the manual should be lodged with the local authority. I do not want to make too much of this, but I should have thought that the drawings that they are bound to receive would give them the information that they would need in any eventuality.
I shall listen with an open mind to what my hon. Friend says. My only doubt is whether it should be a statutory, requirement or whether it should necessarily be laid down in the building regulations. As I say, I shall keep an open mind on the matter, but it should certainly be established practice. Whatever the House decides on new clause 11, I very much hope that the professional bodies and organisations concerned with house building will heed the wise comments of the hon. Member for Norwood. 1 think. in particular, of the National Housing Building Council, the House Builders Federation, the Royal Institute of British Architects and the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors. They should encourage their members, as a matter of voluntary practice, to make quite sure that the occupiers of all dwellings receive a manual, which will be of great benefit to the people who occupy these dwellings.

§ Mr. Wyn Roberts
The Government have a great deal of sympathy with the idea behind the clause. It is helpful 509 to a house buyer, especially someone buying a new home for the first time, to be given information about the nature of his purchase, about the structure, about the aspects where he needs to take special care in maintenance and about those of which he needs to be careful if he considers alterations or extensions.
However, the Government have serious doubts about whether these are appropriate matters for building regulations—in other words, for the criminal law. We have strong reservations about the burden that the proposal would impose on local authorities as depositories for the proposed documents. I note that my hon. Friend the Member for Chipping Barnet (Mr. Chapman) shares my doubts about the involvement of the local authority.
Presumably the hon. Member for Norwood (Mr. Fraser) also envisages the local council keeping the manuals up to date. There is a problem of how detailed the manuals should be. Would they be changed whenever a new electrical socket or a new tap for a garden hose was added? The House will see the detail in which it might be asking local authorities to involve themselves. If it were not strictly correct in all its details, especially in such matters as the siting of services, a manual of the type envisaged could create more hazards than it prevented.
A misleadingly authoritative document formally deposited with the local council could create a false sense of security which might encourage an inexperienced do-it-yourself householder or a tradesman in a hurry to neglect some of the safety checks on the positioning of wiring and pipes which he would otherwise have to carry out in the absence of such an apparently comprehensive manual.
We are satisfied that it would be good practice for house builders to give the new owner all the necessary details about the construction and the running of his home. I understand that the National Housebuilding Council, whose scheme already covers virtually all houses built for private sale, is preparing a revised edition of its owner's manual to be provided by the builder for each new purchaser. This manual will allow for information covering the type of construction, the positions of mains services and any other relevant features.
I hope that hon. Members will agree that it is much better to proceed by co-operation than by coercion. I take the point made by my hon. Friend the Member for Chipping Barnet that it is desirable that good practice should be known to all those involved with house building and house sale.
It is most desirable to avoid putting an unnecessary burden on local authorities by involving them in matters which are essentially between house builders and their customers. On that ground I invite the hon. Member for Norwood to withdraw the motion.

§ Mr. John Fraser
I beg to ask leave to withdraw the motion.