To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what progress has been made on implementing the European Inter-institutional Agreement on better law making 2003, with particular reference to measure 34 on the creation and publication of transposition tables; whether a transposition co-ordinator has been appointed; and if he will make a statement. (163411)

I have been asked to reply.

Significant progress has been made embedding use of impact assessment in the policy-making process and in simplifying existing EU legislation. In particular, the European Council in March 2007 endorsed a Commission proposal to set a target to reduce administrative burdens arising from EU law by 25 per cent. by 2012. As far as paragraph 34 is concerned, a transposition coordinator has been appointed in the Cabinet Office European Secretariat. New guidance for officials on transposition was published in September; this explains how officials can use the transposition notes they provide to Parliament as transposition tables for the European Commission. All transposition notes are published at the Office of Public Sector Information website,

www.opsi.gov.uk