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The government has announced plans to accelerate decision-making by removing what it describes as “outdated regulations and overlapping consultations” as part of broader efforts to reduce red tape. This initiative aims to streamline processes and enable quicker delivery of policies and projects across the country.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has voiced frustration over the current system, noting that numerous regulations, consultations, and arm’s-length bodies prolong the time from initial decision-making to final implementation. The Cabinet Office has outlined intentions to clarify Whitehall procedures with the goal of fostering improvements in communities nationwide.
Since Labour assumed power in 2024, several consultations and taskforces have been launched on various topics, including a potential social media ban for under-16s following parliamentary discussions. Other ongoing consultations involve fire safety guidance, minimum learning periods for learner drivers, and a prohibition on new leasehold flats, all of which are documented on the official government website.
The Cabinet Office clarified that complex or wide-ranging policies will continue to undergo consultations; however, it stressed that consultations have increasingly been used for more routine matters, such as the production of departmental annual reports. To address this, the government plans to raise the threshold for when reporting and consultation duties must be included in legislation and intends to employ artificial intelligence to identify and eliminate “disproportionate” consultations. Additional changes will also be made concerning equalities impact assessments and environmental reviews of projects. Part of the reforms includes simplifying the collective Cabinet agreement process, which currently involves what the government describes as “onerous” interdepartmental letter exchanges.
Key figures leading this reform effort include Cabinet Secretary Dame Antonia Romeo, Cabinet Office Minister Nick Thomas-Symonds, and Attorney General Lord Hermer. Thomas-Symonds emphasized the need for change by saying, “For too long, the levers of power in Whitehall have been trapped under layers of outdated regulations and overlapping consultations that prioritise process over progress. We are stripping away these layers to empower brilliant public servants to deliver change for working people, replacing an outsourcing of responsibility with accountability and decisive action.”
However, the Conservative shadow Cabinet Office minister Mike Wood criticized the move, describing it as “deeply ironic” given the government’s reliance on consultations. He remarked, “This is a government that has become increasingly risk-averse, paralysed by Lord Hermer’s legal caution and tied up in process. This is a government at war with itself.
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