Red tape moving in the right direction, IOD says

22 September 2005

UK employers today welcomed efforts to challenge excessive EU red tape. The Institute of Directors (IoD) said it was very encouraged by the UK Government’s efforts and of the positive signals coming out of the EC but to maintain business confidence the EC needs to demonstrate progress sooner rather than later.

Speaking at the UK Better Regulation Conference in Edinburgh, James Walsh, Head of Regulatory Affairs at the IoD, said:

“Business supports the Government’s efforts to champion the red tape agenda throughout Europe. Part of the problem is tackling the risk-averse culture that exists amongst Eurocrats. Better regulation is not about simply striking items of legislation off the statute books and reducing important protections. Very often, what our members want is to retain the legal framework but simplify it and reduce overlapping to cut the costly admin burdens.”

The IoD said it strongly endorsed the Government’s mammoth task of measuring the administrative burdens on business and then setting a target to reduce them. For many companies, red tape makes the difference between expanding the business and standing still.

James Walsh, said:

“Business is, of course, willing to play a part in the challenge to reduce red tape. For example, we have found that secondments from the private sector in to Whitehall create important opportunities to share knowledge and experiences, which often leads to more rapid consensus and effective results.”