Volume 72, Issue 3

The German Council of Economic Experts (Sachverständigenrat zur Begutachtung der gesamtwirtschaftlichen Entwicklung, SVR) is the most prominent institution of economically based policy advice in Germany. In their comprehensive annual report, the five experts critically assess current economic policy. Since 1999, the ECB has also had to face this criticism. The five experts argue fairly and constructively, but also critically. This critical argumentation results from the Council‘s stability-oriented and ordoliberal basic stance. In contrast to the ECB, the SVR sees inflation risks rather than deflation risks, argues not on a case-by-case basis but on the basis of monetary policy rules, and repeatedly points to the interdependence of the sub-regimes of the economic order, for example when it warns of fiscal or financial dominance of monetary policy. These findings can contribute to the scholarly debate on how the traditionally critical attitude of the German public towards the ECB and its policies comes to be.

Since the 1990s, a number of governments in Germany and Europe have put better regulation and bureaucracy reduction on the political agenda and implemented corresponding reforms. In the face of increasing international competition, a growing body of regulation and the need to maintain and strengthen the legitimacy of legislative action, reforms are aimed at reducing regulatory compliance costs and the bureaucratic burden that regulations place on businesses, citizens and public administration. Germany’s National Regulatory Control Council (NKR) was set up in 2006 on the basis of the Act Establishing a National Regulatory Control Council. In its structure, procedures and methodology, the NKR represents a new approach to institutionalising better regulation. This article looks at the core task of the NKR, namely “bureaucracy checks”, and at a number of recent proposals issued to the German government by the NKR in its advisory role. An examination of changes in bureaucracy and compliance costs is followed by an outline of areas in which the NKR advocates action. Proposals relate to planning and approval processes and to the feasibility and digital-readiness of legislation.

In order to prevent money laundering and terrorist financing, the European Union has issued the so-called Anti-Money Laundering Directive, on the basis of which a transparency register has been set up in every EU member state. This register is identifying the beneficial owners of legal entities. This article is looking into the costs and bureaucratic burdens associated with registration for company requirements in France, Italy, Austria and Germany and the reasons for the sometimes considerable differences.

The ever increasing regulation is overwhelming and strangles the companies. It ties up enormous resources, foremost the upcoming EU Supply Chain Directive. Regulation is based on anecdotic examples instead of a systematic analysis. Simple proposals to ease up the burden to come along with the European supply chain regulation – e. g. excluding the supply chain parts laying within Europe – exist, but the debate does not progress. Other examples of the ever increasing regulation include the Foreign Subsidies Regulation and the Barrier-Free Reinforcement Act. Again, well intended regulation. But all adding up to an immense bureaucratic burden. That the Federal Ministry of Justice has put the reduction of bureaucracy on its to-do-list gives hope. In times of crises such as the pandemic, wars, energy crisis, climate crises and inflation, burdens on businesses should be reduced to free up resources.

If employees drive to work by car or work from home, they can use a lump sum deduction to reduce their taxable income. In 2023, the work-from-home-deduction was increased from 5 € to 6 € a day (for 210 instead of 120 days). This could be an fiscal incentive to work from home more instead of driving to work by car. A result could be a higher interest of employees for work from home. Employers can use this aspect for recruting.