Denis Bouget, impact assessment in the social domain

Post Growth Conference European Parliament Brussels 18-19 September 2018 Session: Internalisation of externalities Impact assessment in the social domain

Denis Bouget

Outline

1- Definition of the EC impact assessment 2- Rationale of EC impact assessment methodologies 3- Societal and social consequences 4- Conclusion

Definition of the EC impact assessment • “Impact assessments collect evidence (including results from evaluations) to assess if future legislative or non-legislative EU action is justified and how such action can best be designed to achieve desired policy objectives. The Commission's impact assessment system follows an integrated approach that assesses the environmental, social and economic impacts of a range of policy options thereby mainstreaming sustainability into Union policy making” (EC, Better Regulation Guidelines, p.9) • Four key words: policy objectives and legislation; evidence; and integrated approach.

• Two EC methodological documents: “Tool box” (414 p.); ”Guidelines” (72p.)

• Strong methodological consistency

Rationale of EC impact assessment methodologies • A public policy intervention may be justified when (EC Tool Box, 2015, p.67): • (1) A market fails, i.e. when market forces fail to deliver an efficient outcome (defined as a situation where no one can be made better off without someone else being made worse off).

• (2) Regulations fail, i.e. when public policy action appeared justified and was implemented but failed to solve the problem satisfactorily or helped create new problems (e.g. two divergent regulations create an obstacle to the proper functioning of the internal market).

• (3) Equity (or other) considerations imply the efficient outcome may not be the most desirable one for the policy in question.

• (4) Behaviours are biased and individuals do not decide based on their own best interests.

Societal and social consequences • Focus of comments • Society, a global market • State, an instrument for the market functioning • Biased approach of equity • Consequences on social welfare systems and labour regulations

Conclusion • Impact assessment methodologies have to go beyond the market • “Labour is not a commodity” (ILO Declaration of Philadelphia, 1944) • Convergence between social and environmental concerns

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