Recommendation 7

Many regulators were keen to stress their independence from the Government. In practice, however, the level of independence of the UK’s regulators varies, and there are concerns in some quarters at the Government’s ability to interfere in some of their operations. Where regulators are insufficiently independent, or perceived as such, it undermines their ability to regulate objectively, free from undue political influence and accountable to the public interest. This results in a loss of trust on the part of both consumers and regulated entities.