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Regulatory Enforcement and Sanctions Bill [Lords]

I shall be brief; we have had extensive discussion this afternoon. I extend my thanks to everyone who worked so constructively in Committee, and to the various bodies that have been so kind as to give me advice. I particularly single out Local Authorities Co-ordinators of Regulatory Services and the CBI. Although this is not the most nerve-tinglingly exciting Bill that I have ever worked on, it is hugely important for business in its constant struggle to meet the demands of regulation and to make money, especially in these difficult financial times when business needs to concentrate on defending existing business share on top of growing new business. For everyone’s sake, I hope that the establishment of local better regulation offices will not only smooth the passage of regulatory compliance for business, but will be carried out in a spirit of helpfulness, with the sharing of best practice, to make business better placed to meet regulatory requirements and to become more efficient and better able to tackle the challenges of today’s tough business world. I hope that the formulation of the primary authority will help resolve business frustration about any local enforcement inconsistencies that might be experienced in operating from more than one local authority area.