§ Mr. Llew SmithTo ask the President of the Board of Trade how many copies of the final recommendations document of his deregulation task forces were printed; at what cost; to whom were they distributed; and if he will make a statement on the proposals for reform contained in the documents.
§ Mr. Neil HamiltonA total of 10,000 copies of the booklet setting out the proposals of the seven business deregulation task forces have been printed at a cost of £1,100. Copies were made available to Members via the Vote Office and were distributed to Government Departments, the press, business and consumer organisations, people who submitted evidence to the task forces and members of the public on request. Of the 605 proposals, 250 have been agreed, 280 are under review and 75 have been rejected.
§ Mr. FatchettTo ask the President of the Board of Trade if he will set out the methods used by his Department to assess whether particular regulations are a burden to business.
§ Mr. Neil HamiltonThe principal methods of assessing whether regulations are an undue burden upon business are compliance cost assessment and risk assessment. The CCA methodology is set out in a booklet "Checking the Cost to Business: A Guide to Compliance Cost Assessment" and guidance on risk assessment is given in a booklet "Regulation in the Balance: A Guide to Risk Assessment". Copies of both booklets have been placed in the Library of the House.