Oral Answers to Questions

Alun Cairns Excerpts

Thursday 2nd February 2012 Commons Chamber

[Brandon Lewis (Great Yarmouth) (Con)]

4. What recent progress he has made on the red tape challenge.

[Alun Cairns (Vale of Glamorgan) (Con)]

5. What recent progress he has made on the red tape challenge.

[The Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (Mr Mark Prisk)]

To date, of the more than 1,200 regulations considered under the red tape challenge, we have agreed to scrap or substantially overhaul well over 50%. That is in addition to our plans to cap the cost of new regulations through the one-in, one-out system.

--- Later in debate ---

[Mr Prisk]

We inherited a scenario in which there was the equivalent of six new regulations every working day. I am therefore pleased to say that in the last year we have identified 600 regulations under the red tape challenge which we will either scrap or substantially overhaul, and we intend to ensure that we increase that number in the years to come.

[Alun Cairns]

Reducing the number of regulations is extremely important, but so are the interpretation of regulations, particularly those from Europe, and the risk of gold-plating regulations, such as the agency worker directive. What action is the Minister taking to ensure that in interpreting regulations, we use the lightest touch possible to comply with the law?

[Mr Prisk]

We have changed the guiding principles from those that we inherited. That means, first, that we are not going to tie British business down by implementing early, as we have in the past. We will implement on the last legal day, under transposition rules. Secondly, my hon. Friend is absolutely right about interpretation. We will ensure that we copy regulations out and do not embellish them, as was sadly all too often the case under the last, Labour Government.