Chancellor summons regulators to Downing Street in war on red tape

Regulators have been summoned to Downing Street on Monday for a meeting with the Chancellor as the Government continues its war on red tape.

Rachel Reeves is expected to use the meeting to announce more detail on how the Government will cut the cost of regulation by a quarter and set out plans to slim down or abolish regulators themselves.

The meeting follows the announcement last week that NHS England – dubbed the world’s largest quango – would be scrapped as part of efforts to cut costs and boost economic growth.

Ms 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.”

As well as abolishing NHS England, the Government has already announced plans to fold the Payments Systems Regulator into the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), and Ms Reeves is expected to commit scrapping more regulators over the course of the Parliament.

Eight regulators are expected to attend the meeting, including the FCA, the Environment Agency, Natural England and the Health and Safety Executive.

The Chancellor is also expected to use Monday’s meeting to unveil 60 measures Britain’s regulators have agreed to take in order to boost economic growth.

These include fast-tracking new medicines, reviewing the £100 limit on contactless payments, simplifying mortgage rules and holding two major drone-flying trials to pave the way for drone delivery services.

The measures follow a demand from the Prime Minister at the end of last year that regulators come up with “concrete proposals” to boost growth as the Government attempts to turn around Britain’s struggling economy.

Although the UK avoided a recession in the second half of 2024, the economy continues to falter and figures released last week showed a 0.1% fall in GDP in January.

– Reviewing environmental guidance given to planning authorities on protecting bats.

– Simplifying the process for agreeing environmental permits, with just one agency in charge of the system and permits being scrapped for low-risk or temporary projects.

– Slimming down the legal duties of financial services regulators, Ofgem, Ofwat and the Office for Road and Rail.

– Reviewing the role of the Financial Ombudsman Service.

Some of the changes, particularly those relating to environmental regulation, are expected to speed up delivery of major infrastructure projects such as the long-delayed Lower Thames Tunnel and the prospective third runway at Heathrow.

Rain Newton-Smith, chief executive of the CBI, welcomed the announcements, saying: “The UK’s Gordian knot of regulations hinders investment with compliance costs that are too high, leaving us trailing the international competition.

“Today’s announcement signals a shift towards a more proportionate, outcomes-based approach that should deliver more sustainable growth and investment.”

But Conservative shadow chancellor Mel Stride said Ms Reeves “and her job-destroying, tax-hiking budget” were “the biggest barrier to growth” in the UK.

He added: “For as long as businesses remain under the strain of Labour’s taxes and trade union red tape, they will be unable to focus on the priority of growth.”

Friends of the Earth campaigner Sienna Somers said it would be “incredibly short-sighted, and also rather desperate” to weaken environmental regulations with the UK’s environment “in a dire state”.

She said: “In the long run, this will only do more damage to our economy, not to mention our health – to call it an own goal would be a huge understatement.”