Glass manufacturer gets clear explanations on reconstruction of premises from the Ministry of Regional Development

Subject of complaint: The Ministry of Regional Development, Construction and Housing and Communal Services of Ukraine (MinRegion) 
Complaint in brief: On 23 July, 2018, a leading glass containers manufacturer appealed to the Council with a complaint against MinRegion’s actions. The company could not receive a comprehensive and substantiated response regarding construction permits. 
When planning a workshop reconstruction in May 2018 the Complainant addressed the Ministry of Regional Development with a number of questions. Particularly, he wanted to find out whether he needed to get permits for specific types of re-equipment, premises renovation and floor replacement. In general, the Complainant formulated six specific questions related to his business. 
A month later the company was invited to an individual appointment at the Ministry to consider the appeal. However, the Complainant received in writing only partial replies to two questions out of six. 
According to the Complainant, this situation was an exception rather than MinRegion’s practice, since there were many examples where the Ministry provided the most comprehensive and substantiated replies. In an attempt to establish a constructive dialogue with the Ministry of Regional Development to correctly document planned works execution, the Complainant turned to the Council for help. 
Actions taken: The Council’s investigator asked MinRegion in writing to provide a comprehensive reply to the Complainant’s questions. In addition, the investigator met with the Ministry’s authorized representative and discussed the company’s case. 
Result achieved: With the Council’s facilitation the MingRegion gave clear instructions on each of six questions of the appeal and explained in detail how to submit the documents. The manufacturer confirmed that the complaint had been resolved. 
 
The Complainant so described the Council’s role in the case: “An authoritative mediator in solving complex issues for the company allows to break the ice of bureaucracy and separation of authorities from problems of businesses and open new horizons to solve problematic issues”. The case was closed successfully.