Long abstract

About Statistics Publications & Documents Information by Country

The quality of government regulations concerns all who are working to establish the conditions for sustainable global economic growth. As the OECD's Public Management Committee has noted, regulatory quality is crucial for economic performance and government effectiveness in improving the quality of life of citizens. The quality of regulations is becoming even more important as rules are internationalised, and national regulations affect the world trading system.

Yet Member countries are experiencing similar and troublesome problems with their use of regulation. Recognising these problems, as well as the substantial work being carried out by Member countries to improve regulatory quality, the Council of the OECD adopted on 9 March 1995 the Recommendation on Improving the Quality of Government Regulation.

The Recommendation, the first international standard on regulatory quality, was developed by a network of regulatory policy officials from OECD countries who carry out the work programme of the Public Management Committee on Regulatory Management and Reform. At a meeting in May 1993, these officials agreed that the Secretariat should develop, on the basis of existing practices in OECD countries (see "The Design and Use of Regulatory Checklists in OECD Countries," OECD Occasional Paper in Public Management [OCDE/GD(93)181]), a guiding checklist of good decision-making principles. A draft "OECD Reference Checklist for Regulatory Decision-Making" was reviewed in mid-November 1994 and forwarded to the Council for adoption as a Recommendation.

The Public Management Service (PUMA) offers managerial expertise and comparative analysis to support OECD countries in improving public sector efficiency, responsiveness, and effectiveness. Working under the direction of the Public Management Committee, PUMA surveys, analyses, and reports on innovations in public sector management, and offers a forum for Member countries to exchange ideas.

The Recommendation was produced within the PUMA work programme on Regulatory Management and Reform established by Member countries to improve comparative information in this area. The regulatory work has several objectives:

Improving the quality of regulation by examining institutional and procedural strategies for upgrading regulatory decision-making. Supporting the development of more effective management of the regulatory system to increase regulatory effectiveness and reduce costs, support structural adjustment of economies in the OECD area, improve regulatory flexibility and responsiveness, and increase openness and transparency.

Promoting alternative instruments by increasing understanding of the ways in which innovative regulatory and non-regulatory instruments can be used to advance policy objectives.

Strengthening the effectiveness and legitimacy of the international regulatory system in solving common problems.