ºÃÉ«ÏÈÉúTV

Q: So I hear queues for the ladies could become a thing of the past?

A: Yep. The latest British standard links the number of toilets to the fire escape provision - effectively doubling the number that developers must provide. Women everywhere are no doubt crossing their fingers (and legs) in the hope that the Department for Communities and Local Government will incorporate this in Part G of the ºÃÉ«ÏÈÉúTV Regulations, which would make it compulsory.

Q: Is this some kind of vote-winning ruse? The government must be pretty desperate if it's turning to the regs to woo women …

A: Things aren't quite that bad. There's always a review of some part of the regs or other going on. The regulations themselves are usually little more than a line; it's the guidance in the rest of the document and the frequent links to British Standards that throw up the challenges.

The last update to be published was Part L, which threatened to outlaw chimneys; Parts G (hygiene) and B (fire safety) are under way.

Q: L? G? B? How many are there?

A: A lot. The regs run from A to P and cover every aspect of a building from drainage and site preparation to heating systems, disability access and, well, toilets. There was talk of bringing out a Q to cover computer cabling but this seems to have been abandoned in the face of wireless technologies. But watch out, if anyone asks you to find a copy of Parts I or O, they're pulling your leg because they don't exist - something the regs have in common with the equally fascinating car number-plating system.

Q: What should I say about it?

A: Women, suppress your glee - the endless slew of new regs makes a lot of people really quite angry. You can get in with regs aficionados by name-dropping ºÃÉ«ÏÈÉúTV's recent Reform the Regs campaign, which demanded a simpler system. Probably a topic best avoided in the pub unless you enjoy letter-based rants - or you're stuck for something to talk about in the queue for the loos.