Chancellor Rachel Reeves is calling on regulatory bodies to slash red tape in a bid to cut costs and improve business growth in the UK.
Her aim is to cut administrative costs for businesses by a quarter, aiming to save billions by sending more regulators to the chopping block and streamlining core legal duties.
The new plan comes after the Prime Minister set out his vision for a more lean and agile state in a speech last week, abolishing NHS England in an effort to scrap duplication.
The PM and Chancellor are adamant that these changes will ensure that regulators will work for people, and not impede business growth.
The Chancellor’s plans are comprised of 60 growth boosting measures the government hopes will improve UK business outcomes, as well as attract foreign investment.
The government will set up a bespoke ‘concierge service’ to help international financial service firms get to grips with UK regulation in a bit to attract this foreign investment.
The Civil Aviation Authority has been pressed to permit at least two more large drone-flying trials in the coming months to streamline the regulatory process for drone manufacturing as well.
The Financial Conduct Authority will see many reforms and regulatory changes, as they review contactless payment limits, simplify mortgage lending rules, and issue more notices to startups when their applications are likely to be improved to support budding businesses.
Recommended reading
- UK Gov Adopts New Approach to AI and Digital Funding
- PM Champions AI in UK “Digital Revolution”
- UK AI Safety Institute Releases Open Source Testing Platform
“The world is changing and that’s why we must go further and faster to deliver on our Plan for Change to kickstart economic growth,” chancellor of the exchequer Rachel Reeves said.
“Today we are taking further action to free businesses from the shackles of regulation. By cutting red tape and creating a more effective system, we will boost investment, create jobs and put more money into working people’s pockets.”
The government is also calling on environmental regulators to review certain planning permissions regulations on the protection of certain species and ecosystems to allow more agile decision making on low-risk activities.
This, the government says, will allow regulators to focus on high-impact, high-priority areas, such as low-carbon infrastructure.
Regulators will also see their legal duties slimmed down in a bit to not waste time on redundant duties – financial regulators, Ofgem, Ofwat, and the Office for Road and Rail will see these reforms first.





