Proposals for government-brokered ‘responsibility deals’ committing
companies to CSR measures in return for a lighter regulatory regime are
being considered by the UK’s Conservative Party.
An interim report from the party’s responsible business working group
suggests a Conservative government could create alliances between
business and civil society to work on obesity and other issues. These
would operate in a similar way to existing voluntary efforts such as
the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative, tackling a small
number of core issues deemed by MPs as ‘of deep and general concern’.
The participants would form a group to ‘create and see through a shared
solution to the problem’ and to make ‘commitments to change that would
be binding’. In return, participating companies would be subject to a
lighter regulatory burden.
However, lighter regulation would be available to all companies, not
just those engaged in such ‘responsibility deals’, provided they were
‘practising, leading-edge responsible business’. This could be based on
participation in responsible business indices or by ‘peer
assessment’, although the party says this area needs more discussion.
Its other new idea is ‘social emissions trading’, based on existing
environmental emissions trading. High levels of fats, sugars and salts
in processed foods could, for instance, be subject to ’emissions
limits’ and companies could trade surpluses. Or limits could be set on
the alcohol content of drinks, and companies that lowered the amount of
alcohol in their products could benefit financially from selling their
‘alcohol quotas’.
So far most observers have suggested the ideas put forward by the
working group would be too difficult to introduce, or even
counterproductive. Janet Williamson, senior policy officer at the
Trades Union Congress, told EP: ‘The idea of companies taking part in
such “deals” then being exempt from regulations is a dangerous one
which, if implemented, could easily result in lower standards overall.’
Mark Goyder, director of the Tomorrow’s Company think-tank, said the
party should be congratulated for some ‘fresh thinking’, but
added: ‘I don’t think it has yet come up with anything that would
work.’
Deborah Doane, director of the CORE Coalition, which campaigns for more
regulation on CSR, added: ‘These ideas would be far more complex
to administer than a regulatory approach which simply levels the
playing field and enables companies to plan effectively.’
The party emphasizes the ideas are a ‘basis for discussion’ and are now
out to consultation until the end of March, with final recommendations
due in the summer. The working group consists of Jonathan Djanogly,
shadow CSR minister; David Grayson, former managing director of
Business in the Community; Peter Davis and Toby Webb of Ethical
Corporation magazine; and Michael Hastings, global head of CSR at KPMG.
