The business of building regulation

This chapter examines the making of building regulations as a social and organisational process. When considering the relationship between business and the environment, the authors argue that regulation itself can usefully be seen as a business, the terms of which are themselves negotiated by a variety of public and private actors. This view is in contrast to the more conventional interpretation of regulation as a uni-directional instrument of policy that is, as a stick wielded by government over business. The chapter does not see environmental standard-setting as something which is invented and imposed, or which simply mirrors government commitment. It rather argues that the potential for environmental regulation is situational, and must be understood with reference to the sector specific characteristics, histories and practices which constitute, in this case, the wider world of building construction. As a case of environmental regulation, energy efficiency in buildings is crucial in its own right.