Vol. 423 No. 1
49 Mr. Barry asked the Minister for Industry and Commerce if any assessment has been done on the effect of Government regulations on the profitability of small and medium sized businesses; and if he will establish a committee on competitiveness which would look at all legislation and regulations to measure their effect on business.
No recent assessment has been done in my Department concerning the effect of Government regulations on the profitability of small and medium sized businesses. However, the Industrial Costs Monitoring Group undertook a review in the period 1988 to 1990 of the statutory and information requirements which impact on business. In the course of their work the Group considered approximately 100 proposals from various industry bodies to lighten the administrative burden on business. A number of these proposals resulted in the implementation of recommendations made to Departments.
All proposals for Government for new legislation or programmes are expected to provide an assessment of the likely cost on industry and the traded sectors. This process serves to inform both sponsoring Departments and the Government on the likely impact of proposals on business.
