The role of parliaments in regulatory policy

• Author: Anglmayer, Irmgard
• Pages: 1-12

EPRS | European Parli amentary Re search Servic e

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1. The role of parliaments in regulatory policy

1.1. Better Regulatio n in Eur ope : only a government matter?

Regu latory po licy covers th e methods and processes for preparing, implementing and rev iewing

laws and r egulatio ns. It aims to ensure that regulation achieves its intended p olicy object ives at

minimum cost. R egula tory policy – or 'Better Regulation' or 'Better Law-Makin g', a s it is co mmonly

referred t o at the EU level and in s ome EU Member States – sets out a number o f key principles, in

particular that law and p olicy-ma king are:

open and transparent;

backed by th e comprehens ive involvement of stakeholders;

and informed by a so und evidence base. 4

The sound evidence bas e is the most importa nt fact or in the context of this study, and in particular

the set of tools that helps inform t he policy -making pr ocess wit h evidence and analysis. Thre e tools

main ly render Better Regu lation 'the means to deliver evidence-based policy-makin g',5 na mely :

ex-ante impact assessment (also referred to as RIA in s ome co untries );

ex-post evaluation;

and involvement of the public and stakeholders through consultation.

The focus of this study lies clearly on impact assessment and evaluation; stakeholder involvement is

touched upon only m arg inally.

1.1.1. Shaping Better Regulation in Europe: the European Commission

The European Commission's Better Regulation policy has emerged since the early 2000s a nd

gra dually ev olved int o its curr ent format. It was part icularly high on the agenda in the Juncker

Comm ission (2014-2019), which is symbolised by the fact that the firs t Vice-President – wh o even

bore Better Regulation in his job title – was in charge of driving the Better Regulation re form

agenda.6 Today, the EU's Better Reg ulation framework is sa id to r ank among the best perfo rm ing in

Europe,7 and it continues to be a central feature of EU policy-making under the n ew Commission

President Urs ula von der Leyen.8

Further to applying Better Regula tion principle s and proce sses in its o wn law- and po licy-ma king,

the C ommis sion enco ur ages also the other EU inst itutions and t he EU Member States to do likewise.9

Alrea dy in 2005, the Com missio n recommended tha t Member States establish their own na t ional

Better Regulation strategies and, in particular, that they roll ou t impa ct as sessm ent t ha t wo uld in

scope resem ble the European Commission's.10 In a similar ve in, academic research argues that, for

Better Regulation t o be successful in the EU's multi-level governance sy stem, the EU's Be tter

4 European Commission, Better regulation guidelines, update 2017, SWD (2017) 350, p. 4.

5 Ben Smulders and Jean-Eri c Paque t, 'The European Commission and it s Bette r Regul ation Agenda', in Sacha Garben and

Inge Govaere (eds.), The EU Better Regulation Agenda: A critical a ssessment, Hart 2018, p. 102.

6 First Vice-Pr esident Frans Ti mmer mans was in charge of 'Better Regulation, inter-institutional relati ons, the rule of law

and the Charter of Fundament al Rights'.

7 OECD, Regulatory policy outlook 2018.

8 Europe an Commi ssion, Commission work programme 2020: A Union that strives for more, COM(2020) 37, p. 9.

9 Europe an Commi ssion, Better regulation for better results - An EU agenda, 2015, COM(2015) 215, p. 4 .

10 European Commission, Be tter Regulati on for Growth and Jobs in t he European Union, 2005, COM(2005) 97, p. 8.