Cyclones provoke review of Queensland building act

The Queensland building certification industry will receive a major review, after it was revealed some houses in the Mackay region may not be built to Cyclone standards.

The affected houses are believed to have framing problems during periods of high wind.

A compliance audit by the Queensland Building and Construction Commission found 11 out of 112 properties failed to meet acceptable framing requirements, Minister for Housing and Public Works, Tim Mander revealed in a June 15 press release.

"Those results are unacceptable which is why we need to take a close look at the certification system as a whole," he said.

Mr Mander continued to say the review would also look for any conflicts of interest, quality concerns and will consider probity and accountability for private certifiers- this will ensure the system is working for both consumers as well as the industry.

There may be other improvements that could further cut delays as well as costs, he said. This will help to grow the construction industry and ensure its bright future.

"The construction industry employs around a quarter of a million people state-wide and is one of the four pillars of the Queensland economy so we need to make sure it's operating the way it should," he said.

The review will be led by construction-law barrister and licenced builder Andrew Wallace, and experts are pleased it's going ahead. In an interview with ABC news, regional manager of Master Builders Mackay-Whitsundsay, Malcolm Hull said he is pleased discussion about industry requirements is being opened up.

"We're happy the building industry and consumers can have some confidence in what's going to be built will be built properly and correctly and they can sleep safely at night in a house [that] could potentially blow away in a cyclone if it's not built properly,' he said in a June 16 article.