Publications | Jean Monnet Chair on Better Regulation

SubCategory

Year

Digital markets

Joint Research Centre (2020)

Exploring Digital Government Transformation in the EU - Understanding public sector innovation in a data-driven society

Regulatory governance

Building Capacity for Evidence-Informed Policy-Making Lessons from Country Experiences

This report analyses the skills and capacities governments need to strengthen evidence-informed policy-making (EIPM) and identifies a range of possible interventions that are available to foster greater uptake of evidence. Increasing governments’ capacity for evidence-informed is a critical part of good public governance. However, an effective connection between the supply and the demand for evidence in the policy-making process remains elusive. This report offers concrete tools and a set of good practices for how the public sector can support senior officials, experts and advisors working at the political/administrative interface. This support entails investing in capability, opportunity and motivation and through behavioral changes. The report identifies a core skillset for EIPM at the individual level, including the capacity for understanding, obtaining, assessing, using, engaging with stakeholders, and applying evidence, which wasdeveloped in collaboration with the European Commission Joint Research Centre. It also identifies a set of capacities at the organisational level that can be put in place across the machinery of government, throughout the role of interventions, strategies and tools to strengthen these capacities. The report concludes with a set of recommendations to assist governments in building their capacities.

Artificial Intelligence and new technologies regulation

European Parliament Research Service (2020)

Artificial Intelligence and Law Enforcement - Impact on Fundamental Rights

This study, commissioned by the European Parliament’s Policy Department for Citizens’ Rights and Constitutional Affairs at the request of the LIBE Committee, examines the impact on fundamental rights of Artificial Intelligence in the field of law enforcement and criminal justice, from a European Union perspective. It presents the applicable legal framework (notably in relation to data protection), and analyses major trends and key policy discussions. The study also considers developments following the Covid-19 outbreak. It argues that the seriousness and scale of challenges may require intervention at EU level, based on the acknowledgement of the area’s specificities.

Artificial Intelligence and new technologies regulation

European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (2020)

Getting the future right – Artificial intelligence and fundamental rights

Artificial intelligence (AI) already plays a role in deciding what unemployment benefits someone gets, where a burglary is likely to take place, whether someone is at risk of cancer, or who sees that catchy advertisement for low mortgage rates. Its use keeps growing, presenting seemingly endless possibilities. But we need to make sure to fully uphold fundamental rights standards when using AI. This report presents concrete examples of how companies and public administrations in the EU are using, or trying to use, AI. It focuses on four core areas – social benefits, predictive policing, health services and targeted advertising.

Public utilities

European Commission (2020)

AI Watch - Artificial Intelligence in public services

This report is published in the context of AI Watch, the European Commission knowledge service to monitor the development, uptake and impact of Artificial Intelligence (AI) for Europe, launched in December 2018 as part of the Coordinated Plan on the Development and Use of AI Made in Europe. The report presents the results of the mapping of the use of AI in support of public services in the EU. The analysis serves to contribute landscaping the current state of the art in the field, and provide a preliminary overview of Member States efforts to integrate AI in their government operations and adopt AI-enabled innovations in the public sector. From the analysis it emerges that the interest on the use of AI within governments to support redesigning governance processes and policy-making mechanisms, as well as to improve public services delivery and engagement with citizens is growing. Governments across the EU are exploring the potential of AI use to improve policy design and evaluation, while reorganising the internal management of public administrations at all levels. Indeed, when used in a responsible way, the combination of new, large data sources with advanced machine learning algorithms could radically improve the operating methods of the public sector, thus paving the way to pro-active public service delivery models and relieving resource constrained organisations from mundane and repetitive tasks.

Digital markets

Regulating digital gatekeepers: Background on the future digital markets act

The EU has unveiled an ambitious plan to regulate online platforms, and the European Commission is proposing to introduce ex ante regulation to ensure that markets characterised by large platforms acting as digital gatekeepers remain fair and competitive for innovators, businesses, and new market entrants. The introduction of an ex ante regulatory framework that could limit online platforms' commercial freedom and give wide-ranging enforcement powers to regulators would be a far-reaching step. Against this background, this briefing explains the rationale for regulating digital gatekeepers in the EU and provides an overview of the key policy questions currently under discussion. Recent reports and studies have shown how a few large platforms have the ability to apply a range of practices that raise significant competition issues. The limitation of competition law – essentially applied ex-post after the anti-competitive practices have been implemented – has sparked a debate on whether EU competition rules are still fit for purpose and whether such platforms should not instead be regulated ex ante so as to provide upfront clarity about what behaviour towards users and competitors is acceptable. In this respect, the policy discussion focuses on a number of issues, in particular, how to identify online gatekeepers that should be subject to ex ante regulation, what conduct should be outlawed for those gatekeepers, what obligations should be placed on them (such as data portability and interoperability), and how such innovative regulations should be enforced. Finally, the briefing highlights the initial views of a number of stakeholders.

Digital markets

European Commission (2020)

Exploring Digital Government Transformation in the EU - Understanding public sector innovation in a data-driven society

This report presents the final results of the research “Exploring Digital Government Transformation in the EU: understanding public sector innovation in a data-driven society”, in short DigiGov. After introducing the design and methodology of the study, the report provides a summary of the findings of the comprehensive analysis of the state of the art in the field, conducted reviewing a vast body of scientific literature, policy documents and practitioners generated reports in a broad range of disciplines and policy domains, with a focus on the EU. The scope and key dimensions underlying the development of the DigiGov-F conceptual framework are then presented. This is a theory-informed heuristic instrument to help mapping the effects of Digital Government Transformation and able to support defining change strategies within the institutional settings of public administration. Further, the report provides an overview of the findings of the empirical case studies conducted, and employing experimental or quasi-experimental components, to test and refine the conceptual framework proposed, while gathering evidence on impacts of Digital Government Transformation, through identifying real-life drivers and barriers in diverse Member States and policy domains. The report concludes outlining future research and policy recommendations, as well as depicting possible scenarios for future Digital Government Transformation, developed as a result of a dedicated foresight policy lab. This was conducted as part of the expert consultation and stakeholder engagement process that accompanied all the phases of the research implementation. Insights generated from the study also serve to pave the way for further empirical research and policy experimentation, and to contribute to the policy debate on how to shape Digital Europe at the horizon 2040.

Impact assessment

A closer look at proportionality and threshold tests for RIA Annex to the OECD Best Practice Principles on Regulatory Impact Assessment

Digital markets

US Congress (2020)

Investigation of Competition in Digital Markets

Better Regulation

Guidelines implementing Section 6 of the Executive Order no. 13924

Regulatory governance

Anticipatory innovation governance: Shaping the future through proactive policy making

This working paper introduces the key concepts and features of anticipatory innovation governance– i.e. the structures and mechanisms to allow and promote anticipatory innovation alongside other types of innovation in the public sector. This paper draws on academic literature and OECD work on a range of areas including public sector innovation, foresight, anticipatory governance and emerging technologies. The paper starts outlining an emerging framework to guide policy making in complex and uncertain contexts and sets out some questions for further research in the area of anticipatory innovation governance.

Better Regulation

Reviewing the Stock of Regulation

Regulations are often made during times of uncertainty and/or with haste in responding to an emergency of some kind. Ex post evaluation allows policymakers to assess whether regulations have led to the intended results that were espoused when they were first made. This recognises that all regulations are, to some extent, experiments and that some experiments fail, and others need adjusting, before the desired results materialise. As a core component of any regulatory management system, ex post evaluation is ultimately about ensuring that regulations maximise community well-being over time. This report provides guidance on the key elements of a sound ex post evaluation system. It illustrates practical elements of ex post evaluation that policymakers should follow when designing ex post evaluation systems, as well as how evaluations themselves can be conducted. As such, this report is a useful tool for countries embarking on ex post evaluations as well as for entities responsible for conducting evaluations in practice.

Behavioural regulation

Regulatory policy and COVID-19: Behavioural insights for fast-paced decision making

This policy paper was developed by the Regulatory Policy Division of the OECD Public Governance Directorate, with inputs from behavioural practitioners and policy makers in the International COVID-19 Behavioural Insights and Policy Group. It discusses from a regulatory governance perspective why behavioural insights (BI) should be considered as part of a holistic response to the COVID-19 pandemic, what governance challenges involved in deploying BI against the pandemic, and how some countries have responded to these challenges. Reflecting on these challenges and opportunities allows governments to promote resiliency by preparing the BI field for future crises.

Impact assessment

Shaping the Future of Regulators The Impact of Emerging Technologies on Economic Regulators

The pace and scope of emerging technologies are creating a sea change for governments and for regulators. They challenge economic regulation by blurring the traditional definition of markets, for example, and by transcending administrative boundaries domestically and internationally. At the same time, the digital transformation is an excellent opportunity for regulators themselves to harness the power of data and digital tools to improve regulation and its delivery. Seizing this opportunity will require fit-for-purpose regulatory frameworks and governance arrangements. This report brings together case studies submitted by members of the OECD Network of Economic Regulators that highlight how regulators have analysed and tackled these issues. The case studies span nine countries and a wide range of sectors (communication, transport, energy, environmental protection) and provide concrete examples of how regulators are responding to innovation in the sectors that they oversee.

Regulatory governance

Improving Governance with Policy Evaluation Lessons From Country Experiences

olicy evaluation is a critical element of good governance, as it promotes public accountability and contributes to citizens’ trust in government. Evaluation helps ensure that decisions are rooted in trustworthy evidence and deliver desired outcomes. Drawing on the first significant cross-country survey of policy evaluation practices covering 42 countries, this report offers a systemic analysis of the institutionalisation, quality and use of evaluation across countries and looks at how these three dimensions interrelate. The report also covers cross-cutting aspects related to regulatory assessment and performance budgeting. The analysis illustrates the role and functions of key institutions within the executive, such as centres of government and ministries of finance. It also underlines the role of supreme audit institutions.