Department didn’t know about quality checks on mica blocks

Four years into the mica crisis the Department of Housing didn’t know what measures had been taken to ensure construction materials in affected counties were fit for use and compliant with EU regulations. It later emerged that the body responsible for these checks had just sent letters on the introduction of the relevant EU regulation.

A senior department official in 2017 had to write to Donegal County Council – the body responsible for quality checks under an EU regulation Ireland is accused of failing to follow – to ask what work the local authority had conducted.

A senior official wrote back to say the council had sent 25 letters when the regulation was first introduced in 2013. He attached one, “which speaks for itself”, he said.

The European Commission this week took legal action against Ireland for the state’s failure to conduct market surveillance on construction materials, due to which, said the commission, “several thousand houses in Ireland suffered very serious damage.” The commission has accused Ireland of failing to comply with EU regulation 305/2011.

In private legal advice to government, published by The Ditch, then attorney general Paul Gallagher warned government against accepting liability for the mica crisis, but said, “There might be a potential liability if some relevant EU Regulation had not been transposed in time and failure in transposition meant the appropriate building standards were not applied.”

Gallagher however said, “I am not aware of any such regulations.”

Yesterday The Ditch reported that as late as 2021 cabinet minister Charlie McConalogue and senior council officials didn’t know who was responsible for quality checks.

‘Which speaks for itself’

In July 2017 the Mica Action Group met with ex-junior minister Damien English in Donegal County Council’s offices.

During this meeting the Mica Action Group, a collective of volunteers formed in 2014 to seek redress for those affected by the mica crisis, asked English about quality checks on construction materials. They asked specifically about market surveillance of these products – the issue on which the European Commission this week has taken legal action against Ireland for its failures.

After the group raised this issue with English, then a junior minister in the Department of Housing, a department official had to write to Donegal County Council to ask what measures the authority had taken.

In August 2017 senior department adviser John Wickham wrote to the council’s director of services Liam Ward.

“The Mica Action Group queried what measures have been undertaken by enforcement authorities to ensure that economic operators in the quarrying sector are meeting their obligations under the Construction Products Regulation since the issue of defective concrete blocks was first raised in late 2013,” wrote Wickham.

Though, as Wickham wrote, the ”the issue of defective concrete blocks was first raised in late 2013”, he had to ask the council if it had carried out the necessary quality checks.

“As you will be aware, in the context of construction products, market surveillance refers to the activities carried out and the measures taken by market surveillance authorities… to ensure that construction products comply with the requirements set out in Regulation (EU) No. 305/2011,” which Ireland is accused of failing to comply with, wrote Wickham.

Four years into the mica crisis the Department of Housing had a request of Donegal County Council.

“I look forward to hearing from you regarding details of any measures taken since the issue of defective concrete blocks was first raised in late 2013,” wrote Wickham.

The council’s director of services Liam Ward wrote back in September 2017.

Ward told the department that the council – to fulfil its obligations under the EU regulation, which requires the testing of construction materials – had sent 25 letters in 2013.

“I wish to confirm that following the introduction of these regulations in 2013, the council issued a letter to construction product manufacturers in Donegal in December, 2013, outlining their obligations under same,” wrote Ward.

Ward attached a copy of one – it spoke for itself, he wrote.

“I attach a copy of one of these letters, which speaks for itself. In total 25 such letters were issued,” he wrote.

Ward went on to say that in 2015 the council received correspondence from the north’s Building Control querying the “product certification” of two companies. Ward said the council made contact with these companies and dealt with these queries.

“I trust the above fully deals with the queries in this matter but should you require any further or additional information, please do not hesitate in contacting me,” he concluded.

A Department of Housing spokesperson in 2022 confirmed that under EU regulations, local authorities such as Donegal County Council "have been designated as the principal market surveillance authorities for construction products".

The Department of Housing and Donegal County Council declined to comment.