Government to clamp down on regulation visits
THE GOVERNMENT plans to scrap numerous regulatory bodies and limit their powers of inspection to twice a year as part of a deregulation drive, deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg said yesterday.
Employers could also be given a new legal protection to have “frank conversations” with underperforming staff without fear of the content being eligible as evidence in an employment tribunal, he said.
“Why, for example, should regulators be able to turn up at your door whenever they want and as often as they want?” Clegg commented, saying that the government is looking at plans to “ensuring these bodies coordinate amongst themselves to stick within” a limit of two visits per year.
He also cited plans already announced by chancellor George Osborne to discourage frivolous cases being brought to employment tribunals both by raising fees for doing so and by placing an emphasis on “more conciliation”.
The British Chambers of Commerce gave the proposals a cautious welcome but added: “At the local level, the picture can be complex, so we need to see more detail on the government’s proposals… there needs to be a clear culture change.”