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Legislative and Regulatory Reform Bill

Certainly the merger of regulators is an element of the Bill and is possible under the Bill. One example may be that a regulator could have regard to the views of a body that represented consumers in that area—such as the Gas and Electricity Consumer Council—so that the regulator’s activities are carried out in a way that is more accountable to consumers. New clause 20 would also allow a Minister by order to amend the constitution of a body exercising regulatory functions under an enactment if doing so would make it more transparent and accountable. An example could be amending the statute governing a regulator to provide that it has a board structure, with perhaps a proportion of the board being comprised of non-executive directors, to improve accountability and transparency. It would also be possible by order to transfer the regulatory functions of one regulator to another. That power could be used where two regulators exercise oversight of related areas. For instance, where two regulators are operating in closely related areas, to make their work more transparent to the regulated and more proportionate to risk, it may be appropriate to transfer the functions of two regulators to a single regulator.