Calls for less EU red tape 'must be backed up with action', urges Vicky Ford.

As Europe and the world seek to recover from one of the deepest recessions of modern times, everyone - regardless of political colour - is highlighting the need for jobs and growth.

To allow businesses to grow and create more jobs, they must be freed from the shackles of over-burdensome regulation.

The single market is meant to help businesses trade across all 28 member states, but all too often EU laws create unnecessary costs for businesses, which in turn are passed on to Europe's consumers.

Parliament's internal market and consumer protection (IMCO) committee is in favour of cutting EU red tape, as demonstrated this week when a significant number of my colleagues voted through Othmar Karas' opinion report on the commission's regulatory fitness and performance (Refit) programme, thereby backing a series of proposals to remove unnecessary costs.

"The single market is meant to help businesses trade across all 28 member states, but all too often EU laws create unnecessary costs for businesses, which in turn are passed on to Europe's consumers"

I was heartened to see a number of measures proposed by MEPs make it into the final report on better law-making, including setting a 25 per cent target for reducing the cost of bureaucracy, and establishing a business forum to enable grassroots suggestions for reducing administrative burdens to be put forward.

In my country, a similar forum - the business taskforce on cutting EU red tape - has existed for a number of years, and a similar initiative is in operation in Denmark. It gives businesses a real voice in alerting officials to over-burdensome laws. The Conservatives have supported the UK's 'red tape challenge', which identified 3000 pieces of regulation to be scrapped or improved.

I was especially happy to see that my call for draft laws to go through a 'competitiveness test' was backed. This would ensure that if a draft law adds additional costs, then it should be reconsidered.

The Conservative-led government in the UK has a policy of 'one in, one out', so that if a minister feels the need to bring in a new law, they must find a law to remove at the same time. I believe this policy should now be urgently taken up by the European commission.

The IMCO committee has also backed my demand for the college to be required to produce an annual statement of new costs to businesses from EU law, shining a light on the often hidden costs of EU red tape.

And it is not only regulations and directives that we want to be fully costed. The opaque world of implementing and delegating acts - where much of the detail of EU laws is to be found - must also be fully costed and impact assessed.

With these amendments in place, I am optimistic that Karas' opinion for the IMCO committee will be taken up in the full parliamentary report, and that this will fundamentally shape the commission's Refit programme on better regulation and cutting red tape.

We know there are good intentions, and none of my proposals should be difficult to implement if there is the political will.

At his confirmation hearing last October, commission first vice-president Frans Timmermans promised less red tape for small businesses, the removal of outdated legislation, and the return of greater powers to national governments.

These words must now be backed up with action - it is time to make sure that the EU's single market truly works for businesses and citizens.

Read the most recent articles written by Vicky Ford - Committee guide: IMCO committed to ensuring future-proof EU markets