Editing Statutory instrument (UK) (section)

=== Regulatory reform orders and legislative reform orders ===
{{main|Regulatory Reform Act 2001|Legislative and Regulatory Reform Act 2006|}}
The [[Regulatory Reform Act 2001]] enables the Government to make an Order to change Acts of Parliament so as to remove burdens on business or others, so long as it can be done without removing "necessary protections". Because of the extensive powers given to the Government to amend primary legislation as part of the Act, a special form of affirmative procedure has been introduced.<ref>House of Commons factsheet L7</ref>

Firstly, the Government must produce a draft proposal and consult interested organisations. It must then lay the proposal and the results of the consultation, along with a detailed explanation, before Parliament for 60 days. [[Select committee (United Kingdom)|Select committee]]s of both Houses then debate the proposal and examine it against criteria including maintenance of "necessary protection" for those who may be affected, the adequacy of public consultation, the extent of the burden to be lifted, financial implications and compliance with European law. The Committees then report their findings to the House. The Government has to take those findings into account when deciding whether to proceed with the proposal. If it does, it then lays a draft Order before Parliament along with an explanation of any changes made, which is again considered by the Committees before finally being put to a vote of each House for approval.

One example of the use of Regulatory Reform Orders have included the Regulatory Reform (Sunday Trading) Order 2004 which repealed section 26 of the [[Revenue Act 1889]], and so re-legalised the selling of [[methylated spirits]] on a Saturday night or a Sunday.<ref>{{Cite legislation UK|type=si|year=1970|number=470|si=The Regulatory Reform (Sunday Trading) Order 2004}}</ref> Another example is the Regulatory Reform (Trading Stamps) Order 2005 which repealed the entirety of the [[Trading Stamps Act 1964]].<ref>{{Cite legislation UK|type=si|year=2005|number=871|si=The Regulatory Reform (Trading Stamps) Order 2005}}</ref>

The 2001 Act was repealed and replaced by the [[Legislative and Regulatory Reform Act 2006]], which created significantly wider powers and has been the subject of considerable concern. The powers have been described by [[David Howarth]] MP as the "Abolition of Parliament Bill"<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Kalitowski |first=S. |date=2008-07-08 |title=Rubber Stamp or Cockpit? The Impact of Parliament on Government Legislation |url=https://academic.oup.com/pa/article-lookup/doi/10.1093/pa/gsn030 |journal=Parliamentary Affairs |language=en |volume=61 |issue=4 |pages=694–708 |doi=10.1093/pa/gsn030 |issn=0031-2290}}</ref> and by [[Daniel Finkelstein]] as the "Bill to End All Bills".<ref>{{Cite news |last=Finkelstein |first=Daniel |date=2006-02-15 |title=How I woke up to a nightmare plot to steal centuries of law and liberty |url=https://www.thetimes.com/article/how-i-woke-up-to-a-nightmare-plot-to-steal-centuries-of-law-and-liberty-jl883wvx5nn |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240608131811/https://www.thetimes.com/article/how-i-woke-up-to-a-nightmare-plot-to-steal-centuries-of-law-and-liberty-jl883wvx5nn |archive-date=2024-06-08 |access-date=2024-09-19 |work=The Times |publisher=Times Media Limited}}</ref>