I think that it would probably open a can on worms if the BSI was nationalied both politically and ethically.  However could the previous revision/edition be made public, I think yes.  Another alternative could be for the UK government to pay something towards BS creation thus the BSI could produce material/standards that are not influenced by the current government. 

There are so many cases where people have said that the BS (British Standard) information they require is behind a PayWall and it is sometimes unclear if they need that standard or not.  Once purchased they are very likely to see that the BS they have purchased makes reference to other BS doc which need to be purchased.  Take BS7671 it refers to many other BS documents.  Every UK electrician should carry an up to date/current copy of it or have a reference version on a davice.  There are people and companies with subscription that allow them to look at multiple BS without incurring extra cost.  As mentioned earlier by MapJ ANSI has Free Read Only access to all US Standard called up in legislation. 

Ponder this.....

Electrician has BS7671 as mandatory but what does your fire alarm engineer carry as mandatory?

Take BS7671 it refers to many other BS documents

We might be able to split that problem into two... BS 7671 tends to refer to other standards in two distinct ways - sometimes in the sense of to comply with BS 7671 on this point  you need to do what 'other BS' says, but often it's more in the sense of 'select equipment that complies with 'other BS' - in that case it's only the equipment manufacturer that really needs the other standard - the rest of us normally just need read the the manufacturer's data sheet to confirm it says "Complies with 'other BS'".

   - Andy.

Sergio Fernandez said:

I think that it would probably open a can on worms if the BSI was nationalied both politically and ethically.

I am conflicted on this one. On the one hand, I support freedom of information; but on the other, I am in favour of small government. I suppose that one can square the circle by the state (national or local) purchasing the right to view the Standards, which brings us back to public libraries.

Agreed. One might regard your ordinary domestic sparks as that equipment manufacturer.

Chris Pearson said:

ordinary domestic sparks

I would say they are a system designer as well when you consider Selection and Erection criteria.

A topic indeed worthy of a Friday debate, or any other day for that matter!

From my own business perspective, access to standards is often important but not critical. We specialise in relatively small projects in the hospitality industry, extension to a pub or hotel, conversion of a building to a restaurant or off-licence, that sort of thing.

My primary function is to ensure that the project is compliant across all aspects of building Regulations. On our plan submissions to Building Control, we must state that, for instance, the emergency lighting shall comply with BS5266-1 2016, even though it has been set out on the plan in full adherence of same. Not doing so for this or the fire alarm, fire safety notices, spread of flame, extinguisher systems, lift provisions, electrical installation, floor coverings…..you name it, would result in a rejection notice being issued. 
Now who is in receipt of all this high-brow material? Often a small local builder and his band of subbies none of whom would want to wade through any type of technical standards. They just need to be told what to do. That is the function of the plan and its attendant specification. 
So whilst I must quote the relevant standard on these documents, I do my very best to be cognisant of the person reading them on site rather than of the BC officer, who already has good technical grounding.

So in my world, which is generally around the bottom of the barrel, I doubt that free access to standards would have any major advantage. Good clear guidance is, however, a blessing for me, especially the range of free issue approved documents that address the Building Regulations!

If only to consider if the installation was compliant at the time I believe it was installed, which seems to be a source of endless debate with regards to EICR coding. It also helps to understand in detail the practices of many older installations still in use from times long before I qualified.

one of my favourite contradictions on the subject is the notion that if a cable is less than 50mm in a wall it’s only potentially dangerous without an RCD if it was installed after the early 1990s… but for some reason all socket outlets or TT installations without RCD protection are potentially dangerous even if installed in the 70s thus predating any requirement for RCD protection.

My personal opinion is that the IET should produce an in depth guide to EICR coding rather than us getting conflicting CPS advice.  I don’t believe that being compliant at the time of installation should necessarily be a consideration with certain things such as additional protection, ultimately something either is or isn’t potentially dangerous. However I do implement the status quo as a professional.

It’s interesting that in Scotland it is becoming law for all rented properties to have RCD protection, regardless of the age of installation, regardless of the depth of cable installations or sup bonding ect. All tenants in Scotland will soon be legally entitled to additional 30mA protection. I’d welcome a similar law in the rest of the UK.

In Scotland they also made it a legal requirement that interlinked smoke/heat/carbon monoxide alarms must be fitted on all floors of a dwelling.  In effect they are superseding what is in BS7671 with regards to fire safety alarms.

Hi Mike

See URL below.  Might be worth a read.

eurogip.fr/.../

Hi Andy

See URL below.  Might be worth a read.

eurogip.fr/.../