Better Regulation programme success questioned

The Forum of Private Business (FPB) has questioned the claims of progress about its Better Regulation programme by the European Commission.

The Forum of Private Business (FPB) has poured scorn on the claims of the European Commission that 'significant progress is being made' in its Better Regulation programme.

The FPB, which represents 25,000 small and medium-sized UK businesses, reacted sceptically to a press release from the Commission's Directorate General for Enterprise entitled 'Delivering Better Regulation', which contained little in the way of specific details.

Martin Smith is the FPB's European spokesman.

He says a closer look reveals a different picture: "Many of the regulations that are being withdrawn or simplified have little or no impact on smaller businesses in the UK, they are often out of date or irrelevant.

Meanwhile the continued creation of fresh regulations that are ill conceived and costly to implement is strangling the small business community." "There was nothing in this that we did not hear in November," he continued, referring to the progress report on simplification initiatives of November 2006.

"That report showed that many simplifications slated for 2005 still had not begun," he said, pointing out as well that the Commission's work programme for 2007 also contained more new initiatives than simplifications.

The Better Regulation programme's goal is to establish a process that will ensure that regulations are only used when other options are not appropriate and to ensure that the burdens they impose on businesses are proportionate to their aims.

Bob Salmon, the FPB's Food Adviser, is warning that fresh regulations from the European Commission are a fine example of red tape with potentially dire impacts on small firms.

"The devil is in the small print.

For example, food regulations of January last year came from Brussels and were, in principle, flexible and welcome.

However, associated regulations and clauses that have come with them have been poorly worded and will leave food businesses open to abuse." "One such example* says that charges can be imposed on firms by local authorities if the inspection required of that business is more than routine.

This is open to interpretation and abuse by inspectors, who have varying standards and are under pressure to raise revenue for local authorities.

In short, business could be left with a big bill at the whim of inspectors." Mr Salmon explained.

Better regulation on the way? The oasis in the desert, according to Mr Smith, is the Services Directive, passed in November.

"When it comes to transposition and implementation, we certainly should not make an exception for the Services Directive.

Early signs from the UK are encouraging." He praised the Department of Trade and Industry's flying start on the issue but added: "The major benefit of the Services Directive for UK firms is in how other member states implement it.

It is about reviewing regulatory barriers to market entry of service providers from other member states, and so of course we need other member states to play ball with the Directive so that more of our firms can enter their markets.

The internal market scorecard, which measures member states' transposition of EU internal market Directives into UK law, was also published recently and showed the UK and Poland to be the most responsible large member states in transposing Directives.

Mr Smith continued: "The Commission's internal market scorecard shows they need to up their game with transposition - the Services Directive would be a fantastic place to start.

What would really help would be if each government talked to businesses across the EU to find out what the national regulatory barriers are, in their experience, that conflict with the Services Directive." Mr Smith suggested that full and honest implementation of the Services Directive would help achieve the Commission's deregulatory aims.

"The Commission's press release said they need member states to jump on board the train with them and start simplifying and reducing red tape.

Fortunately the European Parliament and Council of Ministers passed the Services Directive at the end of last year, which requires member states to do exactly that." "It seems logical that the best thing the Commission can do is make sure member states implement that Directive," he concluded.

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