§ Mr. SteenTo ask the President of the Board of Trade if he will ensure that his ministerial management information system for establishing objectives for his Department includes deregulation objectives(a) for him and (b) for each of the Ministers within his Department. [15567]
§ Mr. Jonathan EvansOne of the principal aims of the Department is to work to reduce regulatory and administration burdens on business. Each Minister has to pursue this objective in the policy areas for which he or she is responsible. There is also a Minister with particular responsibility for promoting deregulation in the Department.
§ Mr. SteenTo ask the President of the Board of Trade what targets he has for withdrawing regulations within his Department. [15551]
§ Mr. Jonathan EvansUnder the deregulation initiative, which is co-ordinated by my right hon. Friend the President of the Board of Trade, over 1,000 regulations have been targeted by Departments for amendment or repeal to remove unnecessary burdens on business. Other prime targets are
ensuring that new regulations, whether UK or EC, are introduced only if they are needed and have the minimum possible compliance costs;making enforcement procedures more business friendly—one aim is to see 100 local business partnerships established by March 1996; andpromoting a deregulatory approach in the European Union.