Law and Public Management—The Human Rights Challenge: Regulatory Reform Orders: A New Weapon in the Armoury of Law Reform

The Regulatory Reform Act 2001 gave legislative expression to the New Labour Government's re-interpretation of the Conservatives' deregulation initiative. In its emphasis on better regulation, the Labour Government significantly expanded the general authorization to amend primary legislation by order that was given to Ministers under legislation enacted in 1994. This article summarizes the background to the new Act. It analyses the opportunities now available to Whitehall to remove, reduce or reallocate red-tape burdens and evaluates the enhanced scrutiny role that falls to Westminster to ensure Ministers' compliance with the statutory constraints.