Regulatory task force tells Government to stop playing games
Lord Haskins, Chairman of the Better Regulation Task Force, has hit out at the Government after a report found that regulators' mode of operating is 'virtually unworkable.'
The task force, a Cabinet Office watchdog for the implementation of Government regulation, found that a lack of consultation and communication had created uncertainty across a number of sectors, bringing the implementation of new regulations to a standstill.
Lord Haskins said there was an immediate need for, 'a reduction in bureaucracy and game-playing between the Government, regulators and companies' and a drive towards 'greater transparency, accountability and competitiveness.'
Singling out the telecoms regulator, he said, "Investors are unhappy, competitors are frustrated, the regulator is at odds with the industry, and everyone, including the public, is confused."
The task force has laid down five golden rules for 'good and effective' regulation:
- 'Transparency (regulations are simple, clear, and easily understood);
- Accountability (making the right people accountable, proper consultation, fair and efficient appeals procedure);
- Targeting (hitting the spot, not unintended side effects);
- Consistency (national laws applied evenly and predictably);
- Proportionality (linking risk and protection to the cost and burden).'
UKTECH readers may remember Cabinet Office Minister, Graham Stringer's Conference Paper for contractors about the need for regulation within the IT and personal service company sector, prior to the implementation of the Regulatory Reform Act 2001.
A report released by the task force after the implementation of the Act was sympathetic to the concerns of contractors over regulations surrounding personal service companies.
Stephen Alambritis, a spokesman for the Federation of Small Businesses and a former member of the task force, said: "The FSB welcomed the task force's previous report which explained that Personal Service Companies should be further encouraged. We believe the task force should now call on the Government, as we have, to pull back the draconian measures given to the Inland Revenue to clamp down on such entrepreneurial activity."
--
Richard Powell, UKTECH