One of the (many) priorities for the UK Government's 6 month Presidency of the EU, which begins today, is Better Regulation. This means:

First, improving the policy making process by better consultation and Impact Assessments (which should include measuring the burden on business and testing the impact on the EU’s international competitiveness). Second, reducing the volume and complexity of EU legislation. Third, reviewing the impact and outcomes of existing legislation.

According to the UK's priorities document Better Regulation seems to be particularly relevant in the financial services context. The EU Commissioner responsible for the internal market, Charlie McCreevy, is all in favour of better regulation:

Businesses and investors alike need appropriate and efficient regulation, not over-regulation but better regulation.

Somehow I don't think the EU will be following the lead of British Columbia in developing simpler, standards-based securities regulation for a while yet (if at all). After all, the EU's not-yet-complete Financial Services Action Plan has already taken a very long time, and will be keeping a lot of lawyers in business for the foreseeable future.

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