ANNEX K: REGULATORY REFORM PROPOSALS AND ORDERS - PARLIAMENTARY CONSIDERATION Regulatory Reform Proposals
2.This consultation document on [xxx] has been produced because the starting point for regulatory reform proposals is thorough and effective consultation with interested parties.  In undertaking this preliminary consultation, the Minister is expected to seek out actively the views of those concerned, including those who may be adversely affected, and then to demonstrate to the Scrutiny Committees that he or she has addressed those concerns.
3.Following the consultation exercise, when the Minister lays proposals before Parliament under the Regulatory Reform Act, he or she must also lay a report for consideration by the Scrutiny Committees setting out a summary of:
	the burden imposed by the existing law;
	whether any of those burdens are proposed to be removed or reduced;
	how the proposals otherwise further the other objects of the Regulatory Reform Act (re-enacting proportionate burdens, introducing new but proportionate burdens, removing inconsistencies and anomalies);
	whether there is ‘necessary protection’ and how it is to be continued;
	how any reasonable expectation of the exercise of rights or freedoms is affected (if at all) and how the exercise can be continued;
	how new burdens (if any) are both proportionate and, taking the proposals as a whole, strike a fair balance between the public interest and the interests of the persons affected by the new burdens;
	whether an Order that imposes burdens is desirable in terms either of the burdens it removes or the other benefits it brings;
	whether any parts of the proposed Order are being designated as ‘subordinate provisions’, allowing them to be changed by less elaborate Parliamentary procedures in the future;
	what cost savings or increases are expected, and why;
	what other benefits there will be from the proposals;
	details of the consultation process;
	any representations received as a result of that consultation; and
	the changes made as a result.
4.On the day the Minister lays the proposals and report, the period for Parliamentary consideration begins. It lasts for 60 days, excluding Parliamentary recesses of more than four days. If you want a copy of the proposals and the Minister’s report, you will be able to get them either from the Government department concerned or by visiting the Cabinet Office’s website at http://www.cabinet-office.gov.uk/regulation/act/index.htm.