Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, when her Department plans to bring forward regulations under the Building Safety Act 2022 to make membership of the New Homes Ombudsman Scheme mandatory for developers.

The New Homes Ombudsman Service is a voluntary service, independent of government. The government has committed to delivering a statutory New Homes Ombudsman and will set out further details in due course.

In addition to any protections set out in a contract, new build homes are normally issued with a 10-year new-build warranty given that these will be required by mortgage lenders. As a condition of obtaining a warranty, housebuilders will have to comply with the requirements of the relevant consumer code which set out how new home buyers can access redress.