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In the United Kingdom, compliance with Building Regulations is monitored by building control bodies, either Approved Inspectors or Local Authority Building Control departments. Buildings must conform to the code to obtain planning permission, usually from a local council.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
The Laws of the Indies were passed in the 1680s by the Spanish Crown to regulate the urban planning for colonies throughout Spain’s worldwide imperial possessions. After the Great Fire of London in 1666, which had been able to spread so rapidly through the densely built timber housing of the city, the Rebuilding of London Act 1666 was passed in the same year as the first significant building regulation. The earliest known written building code is included in the Code of Hammurabi, which dates from circa 1772 BC. Building codes have been criticized for contributing to housing crisis and increasing the cost of new housing to some extent, including through conflicting code between different administrators. Each country now has National Annexes to localize the contents of the Eurocodes.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n