The 2012 Recommendation of the Council on Regulatory Policy and Governance recognises that an effective regulatory policy includes “a consistent policy covering the role of functions of regulatory agencies in order to provide greater confidence that regulatory decisions are made on an objective, impartial and consistent basis, without conflict of interest, bias or improper influence.”

To assist countries in translating this recommendation into practice, the OECD developed Best Practice Principles for the Governance of Regulators that reflects public consultation and key inputs from OECD member and non-member countries. The Principles address the different facets of a regulator’s governance and identify the best or good practices for:

1. Role clarity
2. Preventing undue influence and maintaining trust
3. Decision-making and governing body structure for independent regulators
4. Accountability and transparency
5. Engagement
6. Funding
7. Performance evaluation

 

The Principles have an informal non-binding status of guidance approved at the Committee level. They complement  the 2012 Recommendation of the Council on Regulatory Policy and Governance and can be used by member and non-member countries to guide their reforms. The Principles will also be used by the Secretariat when reviewing regulatory policies in member and non-member countries as a set of evaluation criteria.

 

• Download the OECD Best Practice Principles for Regulatory Policy: The Governance of Regulators

 

For more information, please contact Anna Pietikainen, OECD Regulatory Policy Division.

 

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• Regulatory policy and governance