§ Mrs. DunwoodyTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what steps he has taken to reassess the current robustness requirements for large buildings, following recent bomb attacks in London and Manchester; and which organisations have acted on his behalf in assessing the damage and formulating design guidance aimed at limiting the impact of terrorist attacks. [11263]
§ Mr. Robert B. JonesMy Department did commission the Building Research Establishment, and others, to undertake limited investigations of the London bombings at St. Mary Axe in 1992 and at Bishopsgate in 1993, but not the Manchester incident. More detailed studies of such incidents are routinely carried out by experts in the explosives safety branch on behalf of the Home Office. Close liaison is maintained by my Department with ESB in order to monitor the performance of those buildings subjected to explosive attack. We have no plans to amend the Building Regulations to increase the resistance of buildings to bomb attack, although we have supported the development of design guidance specifically aimed at limiting the effect of explosions on buildings which are considered to be at particular risk of terrorist attack.