The European Union versus the Better Regulation Agenda

This Working Paper aims to shed light on the machinations behind recent developments regarding the Better Regulation agenda. How should we interpret the Commission’s insistence on relentlessly attacking its own legislation? Why does it constantly refer to the costs, yet never once mention the benefits? Eric van de Abeele, who has already written... Find out more

Despite the meltdown caused by deregulation in the financial sector, the Barroso Commission continues to push Better Regulation as delivering light-touch, business-friendly lawmaking. This report explains the ins and outs of the Better Regulation agenda, and answers many of the questions raised by this programme that it is claimed will improve the... Find out more

"This report is on the European Commission's "better regulation" programme. The Commission is promising that scrapping or revising a number of directives will save businesses around 40 billion euros by reducing the "administrative formalities" they impose. In Better Regulation: a critical assessment , Laurent Vogel (ETUI) and Eric Van den Abeele... Find out more

The rhinoceros is reputed to be a single-minded and short-sighted animal. The current European Commission’s determination to make “better regulation” its historical contribution to the shaping of Europe smacks of the same obduracy and myopia. “Better regulation”? Who could be against that? It would be like complaining about sunny weather. But the... Find out more

Scrutiny of the Better Regulation agenda reveals the European Commission’s use of doublespeak. Feigning a concern for modernisation, simplification and improvement of the quality of Community regulation, the Commission has embarked, with the help of the Council and the tacit approval of the European Parliament, on an insidious enterprise to... Find out more