Part L delayed until April 2006

Originally, the government announced it would introduce changes to Part L, the conservation of fuel and power, and Part F, ventilation, on 1 January, to coincide with the implementation of the European Union’s Energy Performance of Buildings Directive. This will no longer be the case.

A spokesman for the ODPM confirmed the delay in the documents’ introduction. He said the government was now “on course for Parts L and F to come into effect in April 2006”.

A consultation on the content of Parts L and F ended in October 2004. However, the government has yet to issue its response to the consultation. An ODPM spokesman said the government “would set out a detailed response to the Building Regulations consultation during the summer”.

Until the government announces energy targets and the methodology to prove compliance, designers and developers will be unable to progress detail design of buildings submitted for Building Control approval after the revised regulations have come into effect.

To help designers, the ODPM is aiming to have an “interim draft” of the revised approved documents uploaded onto the ODPM website this month.

Publication of both approved documents is not expected until January 2006.

The delay in the introduction of the revised regulations came to light in a debate on the energy green paper on 7 July when environment minister Elliott Morley announced the energy regulations would now come into force in April 2006.

The delay could further threaten the government’s target of cutting carbon emissions 20% from 1990 levels by 2010, although the ODPM spokesman denied this would be the case. He said: “The ODPM and DEFRA are working closely together to improve energy efficiency in housing as we believe this is a key element of reaching our targets for reduced CO2 emissions.”