Today we released our annual compliance report, the Best Practice Regulation Report 2011-12. It’s our independent assessment of compliance with Australian Government and Council of Australian Governments (COAG) best practice regulation requirements. Essentially it answers the question whether a Regulation Impact Statement was prepared for the decision and if it was published. It also includes information about post-implementation reviews.
The 2011-12 report shows an increase in compliance with the Australian Government best practice regulation requirements. The number of non-compliant proposals fell from 16 to 9, and compliance at the decision-making stage increased in percentage terms from 75 per cent to 88 per cent. No agency had more than one example of non-compliance with the best practice regulation requirements.
The Australian Government prepared RISs on a broad range of issues including Australia’s negotiating framework regarding bluefin stock, regulatory changes to facilitate the rollout of the NBN and Australia’s plan for a clean energy future. Australian Government non-compliant proposals included measures to address problem gambling, tobacco plain packaging and revised export control orders for the live cattle trade.
The number of Prime Minister’s ‘exceptional circumstances’ exemptions granted decreased from 14 in 2010-11 to 5 in 2011-12. Proposals granted exemptions included reforms to the superannuation system and extending Telstra retail price controls to June 2014. The 2011-12 report shows a decrease in compliance with the COAG best practice regulation requirements.
There were three non-compliant proposals in 2011-12, including the introduction of pregnancy warning labels on alcohol. The 2011-12 report also discusses recent developments in relation to best practice regulation, including the OBPR outposting initiative, OBPR research work and the OBPR training initiative conducted for developing APEC economies.