As the European Union advances its Affordable Housing Plan and prepares the forthcoming Housing Simplification Package, ensuring that faster housing delivery does not compromise safety remains essential. In a joint position paper, industry stakeholders underline that simplification should improve administrative efficiency while maintaining strong fire and life safety standards across Europe’s built environment.
The paper highlights that safe, sustainable and resilient buildings are fundamental to delivering long-term affordable housing solutions and supporting Europe’s climate-neutral objectives.
Simplification Should Improve Delivery, Not Reduce Protection
The European Parliament has recently reinforced the need to accelerate housing delivery by reducing administrative burdens and shortening permitting procedures, while preserving high standards for safety, sustainability and quality. The position paper welcomes this direction and stresses that simplification should focus on streamlining procedures rather than weakening regulatory safeguards.
According to the signatories, delays in construction projects are often linked to fragmented administrative processes, inconsistent interpretation of rules and unclear responsibilities between authorities, rather than to safety requirements themselves.
The paper therefore supports a pragmatic approach based on the principle of “simplifying procedures, not safety outcomes”. This includes reducing duplication, improving coordination and streamlining documentation, while preserving robust fire and life safety protections.
A Safe-by-Design Approach for European Housing
A central recommendation is the adoption of a safe-by-design approach within the Housing Simplification Package. This means integrating fire and life safety considerations from the earliest stages of planning, design and permitting processes, rather than treating them as secondary compliance requirements.
The paper highlights the importance of digital permitting systems, interoperable administrative tools and standardised documentation to improve efficiency and predictability for both authorities and developers. Risk-based procedures and digital pre-assessments could help accelerate permitting timelines without compromising technical rigour or safety performance.
Better Coordination Across Europe
The document also identifies stronger EU-level coordination as an important lever for effective simplification. While building regulations remain under national competence, greater consistency in the interpretation and application of fire safety requirements could reduce complexity and administrative fragmentation across Member States.
The paper calls for enhanced cooperation through shared guidance, common risk-based approaches and stronger technical capacity-building for public authorities and professionals involved in the construction sector.
In addition, the paper highlights the importance of better and more harmonised EU-level information on residential fire risks and incidents to support clearer and more consistent safety procedures across Europe
Aligning Safety with Energy Efficiency and Renovation Policies
The position paper underlines the need for full alignment between the Housing Simplification Package and the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD). As electrification increases through solar installations, energy storage systems and other innovative technologies, fire and life safety considerations become increasingly important.
The signatories stress that energy-efficient renovation and decarbonisation efforts must enhance, rather than compromise, the long-term safety, durability and resilience of buildings.
Special attention is also given to vulnerable households and social housing, where fire risks can have disproportionate consequences. The paper therefore calls for fire safety measures to be systematically integrated into affordable housing strategies.
Recommended Actions for the European Commission
The paper recommends that the European Commission:
- Strengthen EU coordination to reduce fragmentation in fire and life safety requirements;
- Promote a safe-by-design approach integrated into planning and permitting procedures;
- Ensure simplification measures do not weaken safety outcomes;
- Prevent automatic approvals from applying to critical safety verifications;
- Develop common EU guidance on risk-based fire safety approaches;
- Clarify responsibilities across the building lifecycle;
- Support harmonised EU-level fire safety data collection;
- Ensure alignment with the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive.
Conclusion
The paper concludes that safety is not an obstacle to Europe’s housing ambitions, but a prerequisite for their long-term success. By combining streamlined procedures with robust safety standards, the European Union can support the delivery of housing that is affordable, energy-efficient, resilient and safe for all citizens.