Chamber calls on Government to act over red tape

That was the warning this week from Barnsley & Rotherham Chamber of Commerce after it was estimated that putting the regulations into practice would leave British businesses with a total bill of almost £23 billion.

Despite a pledge from the Government to tackle the burden of red tape, a “timeline” published by the British Chambers of Commerce has laid out the range of new employment legislation which is set to come into force between April 2011 and April 2015.

It includes the Agency Workers Directive, Pensions Reform laws and the Right to Request Time off to Train regulations, which between them are expected to cost firms more than £6 billion.

Danny Revitt, the chairman of the Barnsley and Rotherham chamber’s Red Tape and Legislation Working Group, said: “The estimated cost to businesses over the next five years as a result of the new employment legislation is a staggering figure, particularly when businesses are looking to minimise overheads in order to grow their businesses or, in the some cases, simply survive.

“It is vital that the Government acts on its commitment to reduce the regulatory burden faced by the private sector, so that businesses can focus on growth and creating jobs rather than committing disproportionate resources to understanding and complying with new legislation.”

A seminar on the implications of the new laws will be held at the Rotherham Means Business enterprise show, at Rotherham's Magna Centre on Thursday, March 10.