More construction site inspections and a bill this fall

Photo: Christinne Muschi The Canadian Press The future bill will review the inspection and monitoring model and will also focus on certificates of conformity, said Minister of Labour Jean Boulet during a press briefing.

Lia Lévesque – The Canadian Press

Published at 11:01 Updated at 12:33

• Québec

The Minister of Labour, Jean Boulet, will table a bill in the coming weeks that will affect the quality of construction, the protection of the public and the qualification of contractors.

“We will focus on the quality of construction, the safety of Quebecers and the qualifications of contractors. So, in the long term, this will help us build better,” summarized Minister Boulet, who spoke Tuesday in Montreal before industry people and community organizations.

On this occasion too, the organization Garantie de construction résidence (GCR) announced that it will no longer inspect new homes under its jurisdiction once, but three times, including once before the walls are closed by 2029, progressively, according to its five-year plan.

More inspectors

GCR administers the Guarantee Plan for New Residential Buildings and takes care of buildings of four stories or less.

Currently, the organization employs about 20 inspectors and plans to employ nearly 100 by the end of its plan in 2029.

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François-William Simard, vice-president of communications at GCR, assures that there is no problem with the training of inspectors or the tools made available to them to carry out their inspections.

“There is a series of tools that are available to inspectors and they have access to all the tools that are necessary, for example if there was an element that required […] additional investigation. So in relation to these elements, there is no issue at all. And the training of GCR inspectors, it is important to mention, they are all members of a professional order, so they are either architects, technologists or engineers, so the training is there, it is very clear,” he said.

Residential, but not only

Minister Boulet's future bill will go further and will not be limited to residential construction. He will review the inspection and monitoring model and will also look at certificates of conformity, the Minister of Labour announced during a meeting with the press that followed.

He has already mandated the Régie du bâtiment du Québec to review the current inspection model with industry partners.

The Minister recalled that beyond residential, “the needs are immense” in the construction of daycare centers, schools, hospitals, roads and industrial projects.

“We have a challenge in Quebec to build more, but that also means building better,” summarized the Minister of Labour.

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