EU Regulation Costs Have Risen by 50% since 2005
The madness of the European Union knows no bounds. A new study has found that regulatory costs incurred by the European Union have risen 50 percent since 2005 — from €108 billion (£98 billion) to over €161 billion (£146 billion).
The EU recognised back in 2005 that its regulations were outrageously expensive to implement and that year launched its “Better Regulation Agenda” which it described as a “key element of the Lisbon Strategy for boosting growth and jobs.”
Predictably, since that time the annual cost to all European nations of EU regulation has soared by more than 50 percent, according to a report from think tank Open Europe.
According to Open Europe, EU-sourced legislation introduced since 1998 now accounts for the bulk of regulatory costs throughout Europe. This amounts to an average two-thirds of the total cost of regulations imposed on any of the member states’ economies.
Open Europe has also pointed that that it is not true that ‘financial regulation’ is a major factor in this increase. According to its report, financial services regulation makes up less than five percent of the regulation produced by the EU each year.
“Small and medium-sized businesses pay the highest price for burdensome rules, and it is here that too much regulation still constrains competitiveness throughout Europe,” the Open Europe report says.
“Small firms are the most affected by new regulations because they have fewer human and economic resources to absorb extra regulatory costs.”
In addition, EU regulation also has detrimental impact on the public sector. Working time rules as amended by the European Parliament and the European Court of Justice have raised costs for governments across the EU.
Government Transport Minister Stephen Ladyman endorsed a 2007 impact assessment of EU motor fuel regulations in Britain which pointed out just one of the costs of regulation.
The report pointed out that the benefits of the EU regulation would amount to £18.5 million per year — but that the costs of implementing the rule are £400 million a year.
Mr Ladyman agreed to the implementation of the rule because, he said, “this is expected to be the least cost of complying with our EU obligations.”
* Meanwhile, it has been reported that British taxpayers have been presented with a bill of £622 million for “incorrect payments made to farmers” after changes to the payments system of the Common Agriculture Policy four years ago.
A National Audit Office (NAO) assessment of the Rural Payments Agency, which distributes £1.6 billion a year to English farmers, shows “scant regard to protecting public money” and fails to provide value for money to taxpayers.
According to reports, more than £304 million has been spent on “extra staff” to administer the EU scheme; some £280 million has gone in penalties and lost subsidies from the EU because of errors, and a further £43 million of overpayments are likely to be irrecoverable. Farmers — many of whom were paid late, and some who have faced demands for large repayments when, in fact, they owed nothing — have faced additional costs of more than £50 million.
