Government's actions on red tape 'too little too late'
The Government's latest effort to cut red tape has been described by trade campaigners as being "too little too late".
The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) has set up a special project team to consider alternatives to employment regulations in a bid to cut the huge burden that is swamping many businesses including licensees.
But the move comes as a new raft of employment laws threaten to swamp pub businesses. Currently the DTI is consulting on six new employment regulations, which could affect pubs. These are:
- Information and consultation (on collective redundancies)
- Employment status (statutory employment rights)
- Employment agency act regulations (covers agencies)
- Agency workers directive (covers agency workers)
- Flexible working (to help working parents)
- Young workers directive (hours of work and pay for young workers under 16)
Business in Sport and Leisure's (BISL) Anna Steinitz said the words must be matched by actions because "the rate at which new employment regulations keep appearing is, frankly, drowning many companies".
"The DTI is consulting on six different new employment laws at the moment and we are also preparing submissions on the level of the National Minimum Wage and the review of the 48-hour Working Time Directive opt-out," she added.
"If Gordon Brown is serious about raising the productivity of British industry, and protecting the viability of the leisure industry, the government must stop imposing new employment burdens. It is not true to say all regulations come from Brussels.
Kate Nicholls, spokeswoman for the trade's Red Tape Group said the industry needed "action not words".
She added: "Quite frankly, I fear that this may be too little too late - we've been promised better impact assessments and consideration of non-legislative measures before. The time for reviews is long past - we need action and we need it now."
The Publican's Red Tape Costs campaign, in association with the Red Tape Group, is urging publicans to highlight specific cases of crazy bureaucracy.
The initiative, which has the backing of thePublican.com and major pub companies and brewers, is to fight for an end to specific laws, which cause unnecessary burdens on pub businesses.
Ms Nicholls said that although ministers admit there is too much red-tape swamping the business community, little has been done to reverse the trend in the past. Instead, the government keeps bringing in more regulations.
In 2000 alone, 70 new pieces of regulation were brought in which directly affected pubs. These ranged from provisions under the Working Time Directive and Disability Discrimination Act down to new food labelling laws.
Ms Nicholls is calling on licensees to contact her with details of where the biggest problems lie. Call her on 020 8567 8735.
