Regulation: KEVE presents Cyprus gov’t with “to-do list”

— Property, customs, processing, foreign labour, procurement…

Be careful what you wish for. At the seminar on the development of Regulatory Impact Assessment in Cyprus organised by the Finance Ministry on June 1, officials talked about the need for the private sector to be heavily involved in improving regulation.

And that is exactly what they got. The President of the Cyprus Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KEVE), Manthos Mavrommatis, presented an eye-opening list of the main current problems, based on extensive research with KEVE members, as well as suggested solutions.

But the good thing for both sides was that it was done in a spirit of co-operation.

“The Cyprus Chamber of Commerce and Industry applauds the intention to introduce Regulatory Impact Assessment (RIA) in Cyprus,” Mavrommatis said, adding that KEVE also promoted this concept during the preparation of the National Programme for the promotion of the Lisbon Strategy, the New Strategic Development Plan, for the period 2007-2013.

Mavrommatis said that better regulation means “Necessary or justified, proportionate, simpler, easier to understand, unambiguous, more user-friendly and of higher quality.”

It should also be cost-effective, not impose undue burdens either on enterprises or on the administration, nor impose undue social and environmental burdens, nor bring about a negative economic impact.

It should be “capable of being implemented, monitored and reviewed,” it should consistent, add to certainty and provide realistic timetables for compliance, he added.

After consultation with its partners, KEVE identified the following main areas where the are several problems in four key areas: property development, imports and exports, the processing industry and foreign labour.

(See full story in our Research section)