Publication of Statute Law Revision (pre-1922) Bill
Taoiseach announces Regulatory Reform
The Taoiseach, Mr Bertie Ahern TD, today, announced publication of the Statute Law Revision (pre 1922) Bill 2004 to repeal 91 Acts which are still on the Statute Book but are no longer required. A list of the Acts proposed for repeal is attached. Further Acts are likely to be added to the list for repeal when the Bill is going through the Houses of the Oireachtas.
Announcing the Bill, the Taoiseach said: We have tended to keep adding to the stock of regulation and not revisit it. The Bill published today helps to address this imbalance by repealing legislation that is no longer required. It is the first step towards a major overhaul of pre-1922 law. It forms part of ongoing work in the area of regulatory reform which is being overseen by the Taoiseachs Department in close cooperation with the Office of the Attorney General.
As it currently stands, the Bill will repeal 91 laws ranging from the Statute of Winchester 1285 to the Treaties of Washington Act 1922. The intention of the Bill is to remove redundant law from the Statute Book which has accumulated over time. It will make the law more accessible and understandable. Combined with further measures, this initiative will help to reduce the transaction costs associated with accessing and dealing with the law on an everyday basis.
The Taoiseach told the conference that Statute Law Revision initiatives such as this are one part of an overall plan to improve the quality of regulation. This plan was set out last January in the Governments White Paper, Regulating Better (www.betterregulation.ie). Other elements of the plan include conducting a Regulatory Impact Analysis of new legislation and reducing the amount of red tape affecting businesses.
The Taoiseach made the announcement at a major conference in the Shelbourne Hotel, Dublin this morning (Thursday 25th November, 9.00am). Senior policy makers, independent sectoral regulators, representatives of the business sector and the legal profession will attend the conference. The Taoiseach also spoke about criticisms that there are too many independent sectoral regulators. On the question of a so-called super regulator, the Taoiseach said that we need to have a debate about this issue of regulatory architecture or design how many regulators we want, what their mandates should be and how we can make them more accountable?
Ends
Thursday 25th November 2004
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