Sixteenth Report - Principles of effective regulation

Select Committee
Public Accounts Committee HC 176 15 September 2021
Report Status Response document linked Recorded deadline: 15 Nov 2021

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Conclusions & Recommendations 18 items (6 recs)
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Government response
Treasury minutes: Government response to the Committee of Public Accounts on the Sixteenth report from Session 2021-22 · published 8 Nov 2021
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Recommendations & Conclusions

18 results
2 Recommendation
The Department and regulators have been slow to follow best practice in facilitating innovation.
Recommendation
The Department and regulators have been slow to follow best practice in facilitating innovation. The Government’s 2019 White Paper ‘Regulation for the 4th Industrial Revolution’ found that only 29% of businesses believed that government’s approach to regulation facilitates innovation. The … Read more
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3 Recommendation
Regulators may fail to protect citizens, businesses and the environment if they do not successfully...
Recommendation
Regulators may fail to protect citizens, businesses and the environment if they do not successfully adapt to major changes in their sectors. To remain effective, 6 Principles of effective regulation regulators must adapt and respond to change. Rapid technological development … Read more
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4 Recommendation
Regulatory bodies do not have a good enough understanding of the costs and benefits of...
Recommendation
Regulatory bodies do not have a good enough understanding of the costs and benefits of regulation, risking value for money. Robust analysis of the costs and benefits of regulatory activity is essential for effective regulation, value for money and accountability. … Read more
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5 Recommendation
Outcomes-based regulation comes with benefits, but also presents challenges for regulators in measuring their influence...
Recommendation
Outcomes-based regulation comes with benefits, but also presents challenges for regulators in measuring their influence and compliance by industry. In general, setting goals and facilitating business to meet them can be both a more effective and a less burdensome approach … Read more
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1 Conclusion
On the basis of a report by the National Audit Office, we took evidence from...
Conclusion
On the basis of a report by the National Audit Office, we took evidence from the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (the Department), and from the Environment Agency, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and the Office of … Read more
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6 Recommendation
We asked the Department how lessons from the regulatory response to the pandemic, including effective...
Recommendation
We asked the Department how lessons from the regulatory response to the pandemic, including effective cooperation between regulators, could be embedded in the regulatory system. It told us that encouraging dialogue between regulators and with ministers was important, and highlighted … Read more
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7 Conclusion
The Government’s 2019 White Paper ‘Regulation for the 4th Industrial Revolution’ found that only 29%...
Conclusion
The Government’s 2019 White Paper ‘Regulation for the 4th Industrial Revolution’ found that only 29% of businesses believed that “government’s approach to regulation facilitates innovative products and services being efficiently brought to market”.9 The Department explained that enabling innovation and … Read more
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8 Conclusion
The Department told us that the UK is ranked highly in terms of regulatory policy...
Conclusion
The Department told us that the UK is ranked highly in terms of regulatory policy and competitiveness by international bodies such as the OECD, the World Bank and the World Economic Forum (WEF). We heard that the Department seeks to … Read more
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9 Conclusion
Rapid technological development is altering traditional business and commerce, the climate emergency is driving changes...
Conclusion
Rapid technological development is altering traditional business and commerce, the climate emergency is driving changes in business and consumer behaviour, and changing social attitudes are shifting citizens’ expectations of regulators. The UK’s exit from the EU has also created both … Read more
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10 Conclusion
Ofcom, the Environment Agency and the HSE all stated that mitigating the risks and maximising...
Conclusion
Ofcom, the Environment Agency and the HSE all stated that mitigating the risks and maximising the opportunities of change in their sectors as a key challenge for them as regulators. For Ofcom, new technology has disrupted traditional business models and … Read more
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11 Conclusion
To meet these challenges and opportunities, regulators need to recruit and retain the right staff,...
Conclusion
To meet these challenges and opportunities, regulators need to recruit and retain the right staff, collaborate effectively both domestically and internationally, and exploit new technology to improve their efficiency and effectiveness. Ofcom has recruited a new chief technology officer from … Read more
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12 Conclusion
The Department views its role as supporting coordination and dissemination of best practice across the...
Conclusion
The Department views its role as supporting coordination and dissemination of best practice across the regulatory system. However, it told us it is the responsibility of individual sponsoring departments to provide appropriate governance of regulatory bodies, including oversight of value … Read more
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13 Conclusion
Robust performance measurement and evaluation, including analysis of the costs and benefits of regulatory activity,...
Conclusion
Robust performance measurement and evaluation, including analysis of the costs and benefits of regulatory activity, are essential for effective regulation. They can help evidence value for money, provide insight into unintended outcomes, and help to refine interventions to improve outcomes. … Read more
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14 Conclusion
We questioned Ofcom, the Environment Agency and the HSE on the extent to which they...
Conclusion
We questioned Ofcom, the Environment Agency and the HSE on the extent to which they are able to capture the cost of their regulations on their sectors. Ofcom told us it is stepping up its efforts to measure its impact … Read more
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15 Conclusion
The government’s Business Impact Target is set each Parliament and aims to reduce the costs...
Conclusion
The government’s Business Impact Target is set each Parliament and aims to reduce the costs of regulation to business. Regulators must carry out Regulatory Impact Assessments (RIAs) on qualifying regulations to determine their impacts on business. Where these assessments identify … Read more
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16 Conclusion
The Department told us that RIAs currently consider the cost impact of regulations without an...
Conclusion
The Department told us that RIAs currently consider the cost impact of regulations without an adequate assessment of the benefits. For example, the costs of complying with gambling regulations for gambling companies are captured, but the benefits of those regulations … Read more
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17 Conclusion
An outcomes-focused regulatory approach is one characterised by setting overall outcomes or principles expected of...
Conclusion
An outcomes-focused regulatory approach is one characterised by setting overall outcomes or principles expected of the regulated industry, rather than specifying rules. This has the benefit of often being more responsive to change because the regulatory objective or outcome remains … Read more
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18 Recommendation
An outcomes-focused approach, however, can present a challenge for regulators and policymakers in measuring the...
Recommendation
An outcomes-focused approach, however, can present a challenge for regulators and policymakers in measuring the influence or impact of regulation and the level of compliance by industry. A regulator’s influence over the industry it regulates—for example, how well businesses comply … Read more
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