Four suggestions for Better Regulation within the EU

The growing volume and complexity of regulations in the EU have contributed to increasing regulatory challenges, extensive costs, and administrative burdens for businesses. The Confederation of Swedish Enterprise therefore welcomes the EU’s increased focus on competitiveness and Better Regulation writes Eva Häussling, policy expert Better Regulation.

Almost 40 per cent of Swedish companies consider regulatory burdens a barrier to growth. Targeted and effective measures are needed to reduce these burdens, secure competitiveness and facilitate growth, innovation and investments.

EU legislation is too often not developed in line with the European Commission’s own guidelines and toolbox. This needs to be addressed to fulfil the European Commission’s own aims to create legislation that is targeted, effective and easy to comply with and that adds the least burden possible.

Good law-making must be transparent, predictable, proportional and evidence based. The Confederation of Swedish Enterprise calls on the European Commission to focus on the following four areas to secure better regulation and to help businesses navigating the EU’s regulatory landscape:

• Use the existing toolbox for better regulation

• Conduct implementation dialogues and reality checks

• Revise the Interinstitutional Agreement on Better Law-Making

• Take targeted action and best practice based on concrete examples to reduce regulatory burden for business