Britain’s businesses have shown the country’s regulatory regime a red card, with 96 per cent of respondents to an official government survey saying regulators are “creating unnecessary problems” in their industries.
Some 89 per cent said rules and regulations, often applied inconsistently and processed slowly, were imposing “unreasonable costs”. Even more of the 271 respondents to the Department for Business and Trade’s detailed Unlocking Business questionnaire said the way regulations were being imposed was limiting their ability to grow, develop new products and services, and become more efficient.
For SME owners, the department’s own summary will read like a diary of their working week. The feedback showed “the UK regulatory system is often complex, inconsistent, slow and burdensome, with disproportionate impacts on small and medium enterprises”, it said, adding that the responses provided “a rich evidence base” for its efforts to “reduce administrative burdens”.
A recurring complaint is duplication. Businesses are frequently “submitting the same information to multiple regulators” that seem unable to co-ordinate their activities, a problem compounded by “fragmented responsibilities, inconsistent guidance, and divergence between UK and international (especially EU) standards”.
The regulation most commonly cited as hindering growth is the extended producer responsibility (EPR) scheme for packaging, which has operated since April last year and requires brands to cover more of the cost of managing household packaging waste. Its reporting requirements were cited “as among the most resource-intensive requirements” businesses face.
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