HM Treasury has published an Action Plan to reduce the administrative cost of regulation on business by a quarter and simplify the UK regulatory landscape, including cutting the number of regulators and slimming down core legal duties. The plan is accompanied by 60 measures agreed by regulators and is framed as a shift towards “regulating for growth”, including changes affecting financial services, environmental permitting and planning-related approvals. Key steps include twice-yearly performance reviews of major regulators by the relevant Secretary of State and the introduction of targets agreed with affected businesses, covering areas such as the speed of decisions on planning applications and new licences. In financial services, the package builds on the decision to primarily consolidate the Payment Systems Regulator into the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), folds the Regulator for Community Interest Companies into Companies House, and commits HM Treasury to explore streamlining financial services regulators’ “have regards” to improve predictability. The role of the Financial Ombudsman Service will be reviewed to ensure it operates as an impartial service that delivers quick, predictable dispute resolution rather than acting as a quasi-regulator, while FCA-linked measures include a review of contactless payment limits including the GBP 100 cap and simplification of mortgage lending rules. Regulators are to agree targets with businesses and publish them by June, and cabinet ministers will report to the Chancellor in the summer with further proposals to streamline the regulatory landscape. The government also plans to consult on enabling more agile exemptions for low-risk activities from environmental permitting, alongside a move to a single lead environmental regulator for major projects.

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