I’m not saying it was done countrywide and systematically. I’m just saying what I saw with my own eyes. In any large new housing estate there might be any number of individual contractors working on a set number of house’s so the quality of two houses right next to each other could be completely different depending on the standards of each builder. My boss was particular in what he did as were most but there was always the one who was not and just chancing his arm. The sourcing of material was also down to each individual builder so quality of materials also varied from one house to the next as everyone squeezed what profit they could and some squeezed harder then others. I saw plenty of supposed quality control fellas turn up and never do a thing about anything but just went and inspected the good ones and walked past the bad ones.
The type of shortcuts I’m talking about are invisible as it was mainly the use of cheaper and weaker blocks which is impossible to tell just by looking at them. You can only tell them apart by hitting them with a hammer as they break much easier then the more expensive ones. They are called seconds and are called that for a reason as only supposed to be used in lower walls like garden walls but the practice of using them in houses does go on as there is more profit to made as he charges for the dearer ones but buys the cheaper. Once the house it plastered no one will ever know the difference unless a really bad builder pushed his luck a little to far and used to many of them in the construction and this will show over decades rather then years long after a ten year guarantee has expired.
I’m not saying its widespread. I just know it happens as I out of curiosity often gave a tap of a hammer to the blocks of a neighboring builder and I know they were inferior blocks and therefore an inferior house but still a hugely expensive house.
Like the funny report btw, and can well believe it happened.