U.K. aims to streamline regulation to boost economic growth as markets fall

The U.K.’s Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves has promised a “radical action plan” to cut the cost of regulation to businesses by a quarter and boost economic growth. Now the Cabinet Office has written to government departments requiring them to justify every quango, with the presumption that these semipublic administrative bodies will be axed or folded back into government departments. The changes are being pushed forward faster because of concerns that President Donald Trump’s imposition of trading tariffs could trigger a global recession.

What should compliance managers expect, and how can they prepare?

The drive to reduce regulation began before tariffs sent stocks plummeting. Last month, NHS England was abolished and its regulatory duties were transferred to the Department of Health and Social Care. The government followed with promises to review energy regulator Ofgem and streamline its “duties and directives,” to revisit the statutory duties and responsibilities of water regulators, and to reform the Office for Road and Rail.