On 23 June 2026, European Commissioner for Trade and Economic Security Valdis Dombrovskis presented the Commission's Communication on 'A Simpler, Clearer and Better Enforced EU Rulebook' before the European Parliament's Committee on Legal Affairs (JURI). The Communication outlines a five-pillar strategy to modernise EU law-making, focusing on simplicity by design, improved better regulation, regulatory deep cleaning, tackling gold-plating, and stronger enforcement. Dombrovskis called on the Council and Parliament to adopt a common methodology for assessing amendments during the legislative process, warning that without their engagement the principles would remain 'ineffective and incomplete'.
The Communication introduces 'simplicity by design', which includes regulatory discipline, preference for complete harmonisation in Single Market matters, future-proof regulation with sunset clauses, and 'enforcement by design' such as designating national enforcement authorities. The Commission will strengthen its better regulation system by extending impact assessments to a broader range of initiatives and enhancing the role of the Regulatory Scrutiny Board. Urgency assessments will be documented transparently, and consultation timelines will be optimised to avoid over-consultation. A new Action Plan on Regulatory Deep Cleaning will target 12 key areas in 2026-2027, including public procurement and banking rules, supported by a high-level Simplification Platform with stakeholders from civil society and small businesses. On gold-plating, the Commission will provide best practices and transposition guidance, stepping up enforcement against unlawful instances. The enforcement approach will feature faster procedures, more automaticity, higher dissuasive penalties, and 11 focus areas for Single Market enforcement. Dombrovskis noted that the Commission has already proposed 10 omnibus simplification packages and will present two more the following day. The Communication represents a significant policy shift towards regulatory discipline and proportionality, with concrete proposals including numerical targets (12 areas for deep cleaning) and new institutional structures (Simplification Platform). The main cleavage is between EU-level harmonisation and national sovereignty, with the Commission pushing for complete harmonisation in the Single Market to reduce fragmentation, while Member States may resist ceding flexibility. Positive impacts include reduced compliance costs for businesses and administrations, especially SMEs, through streamlined rules and less gold-plating. Negative impacts include potential loss of national regulatory autonomy and possible delays in urgent legislation due to mandatory impact assessments. Key stakeholders affected are EU businesses (lower administrative burden), national authorities (less discretion but clearer guidance), EU consumers (better functioning Single Market), and the European Parliament and Council (pressure to adopt common methodology).