The Prime Minister has announced plans to cut the number of quangos to reduce red tape - but vows to scrap just one of the 27 appointed during his first eight months in office.
Setting out his new plan, Starmer blamed the previous Conservative government for “hiding behind regulators” and allowing bureaucracy to “bloat and block” growth.
However, the quango blame game has been going on for decades, with leaders as far back as Margaret Thatcher agreeing that unelected governmental bodies wield too much power with little accountability or results to show for it.
Previous attempts have largely failed due to a thicket of entrenched interests, political inertia, and the inherent complexity of modern governance.
The Prime Minister has announced plans to cut the number of quangos to reduce red tape - yet 27 have been appointed since he took office
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Starmer said on Tuesday: “For too long, the previous government hid behind regulators – deferring decisions and allowing regulations to bloat and block meaningful growth in this country. And it has been working people who pay the price of this stagnation.
“This is the latest step in our efforts to kickstart economic growth, which is the only way we can fundamentally drive-up living standards and get more money in people’s pockets.
“That’s why it is the priority in the Plan for Change, and it’s why I’m not letting anything get in its way.”
Rachel Reeves said: “The regulatory system has become burdensome to the point of choking off innovation, investment and growth.
“We will free businesses from that stranglehold, delivering on our Plan for Change to kickstart economic growth and put more money into working people’s pockets.”
Will this time be different?
Critics argue that Starmer's rhetoric does not match up to reality.
As the Conservatives point out, 27 quangos have been set up since Labour swept to power last July. That's approximately one every nine days since taking office.
These are:
- Regulatory Innovation Office
- National Infrastructure and Service Transformation Authority
- Great British Energy
- Mission Control
- National Energy System Operator
- Solar Taskforce
- Border Security Command
- Jet Zero Taskforce
- British Infrastructure Taskforce
- Creative Industries Taskforce
- Circular Economy Taskforce
- Tree Planting Taskforce
- Child Poverty Taskforce
- Flooding Resilience Taskforce
- Motor Insurance Taskforce
- New Towns Taskforce
- Onshore Wind Industry Taskforce
- Skills England
- Industrial Strategy Council
- Passenger Standards Authority
- National Jobs and Careers
- Ethics and Integrity Commissioner
- House of Commons Modernisation Committee
- School Support Staff Negotiating Body
- Independent Football Regulator
- Fair Work Agency
- Defence Innovation Agency
And out of this 27, Labour has vowed to scrap just one quango so far: the Payment Systems Regulator (PSR), which oversees payment systems like Mastercard.
Even this cut is deceptive, critics claim, as rather than being eliminated, the PSR’s functions are being merged into the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), another quango.
Out of 27 appointed since taking power, Labour has vowed to scrap just one quango so far
PAThe Conservatives argue this isn’t a real reduction but a rebranding, leaving the net number of quangos effectively unchanged.
Shadow Cabinet Office minister Mike Wood called it “not worth the paper it’s written on” highlighting the merger rather than abolition.
He said: “This announcement isn’t worth the paper it is written on, given the regulator that the Government is supposedly abolishing is instead just being merged with another regulator – that it is already a subsidiary of.
“Since taking office this Government has created 27 new quangos and regulators – including Rachel Reeves’s Office for Value for Money, a pet project that has been slammed as a total waste of taxpayers’ cash.
“Instead of vapid words, Labour should turn their attention to the biggest blocker of growth in the country – Rachel Reeves’s budget.”
