Technology trade association techUK has released a new report urging government and regulators to adopt a ‘pro-growth’ mindset to drive investment and economic growth.
In the report, the company outlines a vision for how regulation can serve as a strategic lever to unlock innovation, strengthen the UK’s global competitive position in emerging technologies and improve outcomes for consumers and businesses.
The report sets out 10 recommendations to improve the effectiveness of the UK’s regulatory regime.
To deliver on this ambition, techUK focuses on four areas: adopting a shared growth mindset between regulators and government; supporting innovation and market dynamism; improving coordination and information flows with industry; and unlocking opportunities in key sectors, such as AI, health and social care and critical national infrastructure.
Julian David OBE, CEO of techUK, said: “The UK has the opportunity to be a world leader in tech innovation, but only if we get regulation right. Better, pro-growth regulation isn’t about deregulation; it’s about doing regulation differently.
“Our report shows how we can build a regulatory system that fuels innovation, protects the public, and drives economic growth.
“By working together across policy, regulation and industry, we can deliver a regulatory framework that empowers the UK’s digital economy for decades to come.”
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The report’s ten recommendations for the UK Government are listed below:
Clarify how regulators should interpret growth: Use the Industrial Strategy to embed a ‘growth mindset’ in regulation. Government should articulate what supporting growth means in different regulatory contexts and set out cross-cutting objectives.
Regulators should make their growth commitments explicit: Regulators should clearly articulate and publish their commitments to supporting economic growth with tangible metrics.
Strengthen mechanisms for post-implementation Review: where there is merit, techUK recommends strengthening mechanisms for post-implementation reviews, including through expert analysis of regulatory outcomes, and assessments of the cumulative impact of regulation and its cost.
Utilise the Regulatory Innovation Office to promote innovation: To ensure the RIO successfully supports tech scale-ups, techUK proposes that their work is complemented by mapping the existing regulatory landscape to identify where additional sandboxes and test beds may be needed and strengthening coordination between existing initiatives. The RIO should also help improve accountability and promote innovation in regulation across all sectors of the UK.
Provide targeted support to help SMEs navigate regulation: Supporting SMEs to scale-up is essential for bolstering growth and innovation. Many SMEs currently experiment with new tools but lack the skills and regulatory confidence to use them effectively.
Adopt the Outcome Based Cooperative Regulation Model: The report suggests regulators should adopt the model of Outcome Based Cooperative Regulation (OBCR), focusing on how these methods can deliver better results for end-users and enhance regulatory efficiency. This model shifts the focus from prescriptive rulemaking to setting clear goals and working flexibly with industry to achieve them.
Ensure regulators are well-resourced for effective industry engagement: To ensure regulators possess the right resources and sufficient expertise to investigate across industry and to facilitate effective engagement, techUK recommends:
1) Promoting diversity in experience across regulator personnel, particularly on boards.
2) Ensuring the presence of well-resourced business engagement teams across all regulators.
Establish a Regulatory Initiatives Grid for the digital sector: Considering the success of the Regulatory Initiatives Grid (RIG) for the financial services industry, techUK recommends establishing a RIG for the digital sector. The Grid would map out regulators’ key milestones over the next 24 months, identifying potential overlaps and their potential business impacts.
Improving procedural transparency: the report recommends that regulators explore ways to improve the procedural approach to their investigations, transparency, speed, predictability and timely access to evidence in this process.
Align on international standards where appropriate: Where possible and appropriate, the report suggests that new regulation should be aligned with international standards in support of outcomes-based regulation.