STATEMENT

STATEMENT19 May 2015FoodDrinkEurope fully supportive of Better Regulation proposalFoodDrinkEurope strongly supports the Commissions ambition to deliver better rules for better results, as announced in todays proposal on Better Regulation. FoodDrinkEurope also agrees that the main 3 Institutions share a joint responsibility in delivering better regulation.It is therefore crucialto open up policy making and interact better with those who implement and benefit from (or sometimes endure) EU legislationto take a fresh look across all policy areas to see where existing measures need to be improved.Better regulation is indeed about making sure policy actually delivers on the aims set. This means that positive developmentsalso include good consultations, with pertinent questions asked well in advance of policy making and with a sufficient time frame to react constructively.It also means that an appropriate impact assessment has to be carried out, with an explicit purpose for action. FoodDrinkEurope therefore looks forward to seeing the new Regulatory Scrutiny Board in action. Along the same line, if the European Parliament introduces substantial changes to an initial proposal, an appropriate new impact assessment should be requested.Clearly, more regulation does not necessarily mean better regulation; while regulation remains important, it is also worthwhile looking into implementation and areas where the absence of regulation may have delivered as well.While the Commissions proposal requires a more in-depth analysis and further commenting, FoodDrinkEurope reiterates its commitment to contributing to this exercise and making better regulation happen in practice.