PURPOSE: to present a programme, called REFIT, which aims at more targeted EU regulation.
BACKGROUND: EU legislation is essential to achieve the objectives of the EU Treaty and to set the conditions for smart, sustainable and inclusive growth, benefitting citizens, businesses and workers. Achieving these goals is a shared responsibility between the Commission, the other European Institutions and the Member States.
The economic and financial crisis has focused attention on the costs of EU legislation and the challenges of implementing and enforcing the laws already on the statute books. National administrations, already under strain, find it difficult to keep up with the transposition and application of EU legislation. Businesses and citizens raise concerns about the complexity and administrative load of laws. The European Council has therefore called for further efforts to reduce the overall regulatory burden at EU and national level.
The Commission is responding to these concerns. Since outlining new initiatives two years ago, it has consolidated its impact assessment system. The 25% target set under the Action Programme for Reducing Administrative Burdens has been met and exceeded. Legislation has been simplified and codified. Significant simplification proposals in several policy areas are being examined by the European Parliament and Council. Many problems on the correct application of EU legislation are being solved without having to resort to formal infringement procedures.
It would appear, nevertheless, necessary to further enhance the initiatives already taken.
CONTENT: the Commission will continue its activities in this field and is determined to meet policy goals at minimum cost, achieving the benefits that only EU legislation can bring and eliminating all unnecessary regulatory burden. It intends therefore to propose a programme designed to set in place fitter regulation.
To this end, it will:
Against quantitative targets: in its Communication, the Commission indicates that it does not believe that setting global targets and/or quantitative formulae for managing the stock of legislation will produce the desired results. This requires a more tailored approach with an assessment of actual benefits and costs - identifying whether they are directly related to EU legislation or to the implementation choices made by the Member States. Such an approach would make it possible to more accurately target cost reduction and regulatory improvements and would be better suited to the specificities of EU policy making.
Main objective of a Regulatory Fitness and Performance Programme, REFIT: to move towards its goal, the Commission will launch a Regulatory Fitness and Performance Programme (REFIT) building on its experience in evaluating and reducing administrative burden. REFIT will identify burdens, inconsistencies, gaps and ineffective measures. Attention will be paid to possible regulatory burden related to how EU legislation is implemented at the national and sub-national level.
Through REFIT, the Commission will:
The Commissions communication presents the methodology, the tools and the partners that it envisages being involved in implementing the REFIT programme. This would include, among other things: