Govt to 'crowd-source' regulatory advice

Tuesday 28th July 2015

A wide ranging set of reforms is to be implemented to shake up the way New Zealand government agencies develop, write and implement regulations.

Speaking at a breakfast meeting in Wellington, Economic Development Minister Steven Joyce, who also holds the regulatory reform portfolio, said the government had decided to adopt in whole or in part all 44 recommendations of last year's report on the regulatory environment by the Productivity Commission.

The report said New Zealand's large stock of regulation was failing to keep up with changing circumstances.

The reforms would see "greater use of exposure drafts of new laws, stronger expectations and reviews of crown regulators, and more transparent cost recovery practices, said Joyce.

In seeking "a more productive and collaborative approach between regulators and their stakeholders", the government would use "more open book exercises and more exposure drafts, to in effect crowd-source improvements to regulations,” said Joyce. So-called 'open book' exercises would allow fee-payers more input into agency cost structures.

Exposure drafts are already commonly used before changes to tax law.

More systematic monitoring of existing regulations will be required by government departments, with stronger expectations and performance reviews than in the past.

There would be investment in improving the capability of regulators across government agencies.

"The changes are designed to create a positive culture change amongst regulators, whose attitudes are as important as the laws themselves." said Joyce. “Regulation is not the highest profile topic in government, but it affects all New Zealanders and causes a lot of angst when it is not done well."

BusinessDesk.co.nz

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