Smart Single Market regulation in the area of professional services

Smart Single Market regulation is an approach to improving the effectiveness of Single Market regulation through better policy-making. It is a concept that was introduced in a previous study for the Internal Market and Consumer Protection Committee (IMCO) of the European Parliament and builds on similar tools, including the European Commission’s Better Regulation Guidelines.

• In the Communication on reform recommendations [COM(2016)890], the European Commission has shown how the regulation of professional services is a significant policy issue for the Single Market. It also underlines the relevance of policy action in this area in the wider context of European labour markets and EU strategies and policies.

• The policy objectives for the reform recommendations need to be articulated more clearly. This includes being clear that Member States need to balance the costs and benefits of regulatory reform. The reform process is not just about reducing the cost of regulation, it also recognises the benefits of regulation and seeks to encourage better regulation.

• Experiences during the mutual evaluation suggest strongly that Member States need guidance from the Commission on how to undertake the process of balancing costs and benefits as they implement the reform recommendations. The European Commission needs to review why Member States faced problems with this process and apply lessons learnt in order to assist Member States with the implementation of the reform recommendations.

• When legislating the European Parliament should ensure that the European Commission has the following tasks: publication of detailed monitoring and evaluation plans; annual repetition of the EU Survey of Regulated Occupations; and the creation of a central repository for sharing evidence and data.

• When legislating, the European Parliament should ensure that Member States are recommended to follow the guidelines on regulation of professional services issued by the European Commission and to cooperate with each other and with the European Commission in the development and sharing of evidence.

Author: Siôn Jones