The idea
To abolish the ARB and pass the register of architects to the RIBA, eliminating at a stroke a totally pointless & self serving Quango, and duplication of activities.
Why is it important?
Because the ARB is an unnecessary anachronism causing a waste of time, effort & money by members of the hard pressed construction sector.
The sharp increase in the ARB fee brings to ahead the issues about its competence and relevance that have been festering for a long time. I seriously resent my fee being paid to pursue trivial matters or bizarre campaigns against distinguished international architects.
The ARB should not be abolished. BUT, it does need massive reform, both in the enabling legistlation and most inportantly in it’s overweaning and heavy handed legalistic witchhunt against architects who are an easy target for disgrunted clients. Especailly small practices.The ARB acts with financial impunity, such that architects are forced to spend thousands of pounds to prove their innocence, but then receive no redress. Further, because the ARB is trying to justify it’s existence it will never fully exonerate anyone, having to resort to low level criticisms even when they are cleared of an actual complaint. The Renzo Piano fiasco is just another example of a quango that is out of control
Great idea. In addition to the points already made, there is the fact that the protection of title, (the reason that architects signed up to the unfit for purpose Architects Act) has now been made totally redundant by the Fraud Act 2006 by which the unqualified passing themselves off as architects, (or derivatives not covered by the Arb, such as “architectural consultants), can be sued for UNLIMITED damages. The self serving, (£3 million per annum) parasitic Arb has no useful function and should be abolished