Better Regulation - a Permant Task
The IRRC 2013 proved once more that better regulation is a permanent task. More and more governments, public authorities and supranational organisations therefore enhance their efforts in this field.

Common Standards for Better Regulation
Although there is no „one size fits all“-solution, it appears that common standards for regulatory policy-making emerge: Transparency on the impacts of intended regulations, early consultation of stakeholders, reliable implementation of better regulation processes and actors, due dilligence of alternatives to an intended regulation, and the constant and systematic challenge of public authorities and procedures are some of these state-of-the-art measures.

Challenges: Balance of horizontal vs. sectoral policy goals, comprehensive regulation, participation in political decision-making
During the course of the IRRC 2013, the following future challenges for regulatory reform efforts were identified: Balancing horizontal vs. sectoral policy goals, installing procedures to limit compliance costs effectively and to facilitate systematic evalutions. Also, comprehensibility of regulations, due consultation with stakeholders and increasing participation in political decision-making are further issues which will need to be considered more intensively in the future.

Pre-conference session
Better Regulation – one term, many interpretations: The variety of opinions in a film about regulatory reform. Direct link to the pre-conference session

Workshops for in-depth discussions
Alongside a public meeting of the EU Commission’s High Level Group on Administrative Burdens chaired by Edmund Stoiber, the conference offered 15 workshops to provide opportunities für in-depth discussions on the following issues:

• Better regulation in real (political) life: Balancing horizontal vs. sectoral policy goals
• Key Actors of Regulatory Governance
• Smart Regulation at EU-level
• Design of Instruments and Procedures of Regulatory Governance

Key Note Speakers

• Eckart von Klaeden, Minister of State to the Federal Chancellor, Federal Government Coordinator for Bureaucracy Reduction and Better Regulation
• Manana Kobakhidze, First Deputy Chairperson of the Parliament of Georgia and Chairperson of Parliament’s Gender Equality Council
• Malcolm Harbour, Member of the European Parliament and Chairman of the Internal Market and Consumer Protection Committee
• Gordon Campbell, Canadian High Commissioner to the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, 2001 – 2011: 34th Premier of British Columbia
• Maroš Šefčovič, Vice-President of the European Commission on Inter-Institutional Relations and Administration
• Thierry-Xavier Girardot, Deputy Secretary-General of the French Government
• Rolf Alter, Director Public Governance and Territorial Development Directorate of OECD, together with participant rapporteurs Stephanie Bauer, General Manager German Federal Association of Liberal Professions (BFB), Aleš Pecka, Office of the Government of the Czech Republic, Paruyr Jangulyan, Armenian Ministry of Economics, and “special guest” Meltem Kaptan
• Michael Gibbons, Chairman of the British Regulatory Policy Committee (RPC),
• Stefan Kapferer, State Secretary of the German Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology,

Organizers
The IRRC 2013 was hosted by the Federal Government of Germany in collaboration with the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH (federal enterprise working on behalf of the German Government in the field of international cooperation for sustainable development), the Nationaler Normenkontrollrat (NKR, National Regulatory Control Council), the Bertelsmann Foundation, the Association of German Chambers of Industry and Commerce (DIHK) and Members of the German Bundestag. Direct link to the organizers.