EU Regulatory Growth (1): The Design of EU Rules

Abstract

This panel is the first of two panels on EU regulatory growth and focuses on the design of EU rules. Over recent decades, the volume and scope of EU rules have continually expanded, driven by continued harmonization and integration across various policy areas. Regulation has become the main instrument of EU governance mirroring a broader trend in advanced democracies: the continuous accumulation of rules in national gazettes, legislative outputs, regulatory acts, circulars, and administrative guidance. This growth of EU rules brings both benefits and challenges. On one hand, expanding regulation fosters integration, market harmonization, and more effective policy coordination. On the other hand, it increases legal and administrative complexity, which complicates transposition and implementation across diverse national systems. These pressures have spurred political debates on regulatory quality and simplification, as well as concerns about administrative capacity and the real-world effectiveness of EU legislation. The EU has, over time, attempted various strategies to reduce the unintended consequences of its rule growth, but often with limited success. Most recently, the European Commission’s 2025 Omnibus legislative packages aim to simplify EU rules and cut administrative burdens by 25% for large companies and 35% for small and medium- sized enterprises that sparked criticism. Against this backdrop, this panel focuses on the design, expansion, and complexity of EU rules from diverse perspectives.

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