Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 15 November 2006
147 Ms B. Moynihan-Cronin asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the cost to the State of the consultants contracted to examine the effects of the main regulations on companies as referred to in his reply to Parliamentary Question Nos. 34, 88 and 166 of 11 October 2006; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37719/06]
View answerThe consultancies in question are being undertaken by the Business Regulation Forum as part of their examination of how regulations impact on the business sector. The cost to the State of the six case-studies of individual firms, on attitudes to regulations affecting them, will be €14,520, inclusive of VAT. The case studies involved single interviews with representatives of the companies designed to elicit broad perceptions about regulatory impact.
The second study is a pilot study on how the "Standard Cost Model" (a method of costing the administrative cost of complying with regulations) could operate. The consultants are conducting a detailed study into two regulatory requirements ie the annual return to the Companies Registration Office and Unit Price Labelling. The cost of the pilot study has been agreed at €151,719 including VAT. A maximum of €7,000 may be added to cover expenses.
