Primary Authority

The Regulatory Enforcement and Sanctions Act 2008 (RESA 2008) came into effect on 1st October 2008 and, amongst other things, it makes provision for more consistent and coordinated regulatory enforcement by establishing the Primary Authority Scheme.

The Primary Authority Scheme is a statutory scheme administered by the Better Regulation Delivery Office (BRDO) and is the gateway to simpler, more successful local regulation which enables businesses to form a statutory partnership with a single local authority, which then provides robust and reliable advice for other authorities to take into account when carrying out inspections or dealing with non-compliance.

 

The benefits

​Regardless of its size, a business operating across local authority boundaries can form a primary authority partnership with a single local authority in relation to regulatory compliance. These partnerships can cover environmental health and trading standards or specific functions such as food safety or petroleum licensing. From 6th April 2014, the legislation was extended to fire safety, the reform being part of the government’s drive to reduce burdens on business by ensuring that necessary regulations are enforced more efficiently.

Businesses should be able to rely on the fire safety advice received from Fire and Rescue Services in the knowledge that it is an expert opinion and a secure basis for investment and operational decisions. Primary Authority addresses inconsistency and delivers assured advice and fits well with the Government strategy for better regulation by offering:

  • greater confidence and certainty for business
  • a net reduction in costs and other burdens for businesses and regulators
  • improved risk-based targeting of regulatory resources
  • improved protections for communities and traders
  • greater prosperity for local areas
  • more responsibility for business

 

Further information

Further Information about Primary Authority can be accessed via the following links to the gov.uk website: