'BLAME BRITAIN NOT BRUSSELS' SAYS REPORT

2.20.55pm UTC (GMT +0000) Tue 7th Dec 2004

Whitehall civil servants rather than Brussels-based commissioners are responsible for many of the problems created by extra regulations, according to a new report published today.

The length of EU regulations can triple during the process of putting them on to the UK statute book, it is claimed, posing an unnecessary risk to British competitiveness.

Fault lies with the British habit of 'gold-plating' EU laws, adding bits to them never originally suggested, claims the European Movement in its pamphlet 'Regulation by Brussels? Myths and Challenges.'

One reason is that EU directives set out the targets but leave it to national governments to decide how to achieve them in a 'proportional' manner. Britain is accused of being over-zealous in its interpretation of many of the rules.

UK farmers, for example, are required to register the birth of calves within 27 days or face a penalty, but the same EU law applied in Spain gives farmers six months in which to comply.

Liz Lynne Liberal Democrat MEP for West Midlands who has campaigned for better law making in the EU, said that UK civil servants were wrapping the rules in red tape and then blaming Brussels for the size of the package.

She commented:

"We now have an inter-institutional agreement in the EU, which requires Comprehensive Impact Assessments to be carried out ahead of new legislative proposals. This was something I pushed hard for, and I think it is slowly helping us to win the battle for sensible law-making.

"It is time the UK Government took the same approach when bringing forward legislation. We are part of the huge EU single market and while there must be common standards, account should be taken of national circumstances. Every MEP has come across instances of British gold-plating.

"I know of butchers being told by the Foods Standards Agency that they must buy new equipment costing thousands of pounds if they want to dress meat for farmers' markets, but the EU rules amount to nothing more than the basic hygiene requirements taught to every student of domestic science!

"It's crazy, and unnecessary, and it gives the European Union a bad reputation for no good reason at all."

ENDS