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CIWM Will Use A Cautionary Approach Over New Consultation Guidance

23 July 2012

Policy minister, Oliver Letwin, announced that new guidance due to come into effect in September will make consultations more proportionate

The government has dropped the principle that consultations should automatically last 12 weeks, the Cabinet Office announced this week, saying response periods could be as little as two weeks.

In a written ministerial statement from the policy minister, Oliver Letwin said the government wanted to make consultations more proportionate.

Letwin said the new guidance, which will come into effect in September, would replace the code of practice on consultation published in 2008.

But he said the changes "should not be an excuse for dodging the principles of the Compact".

CIWM has responded with the following: "CIWM has adopted a cautionary approach to the announcement on July 17 from the Cabinet Office that the response period for Government consultations may be as little as 2 weeks in the future, depending on the complexity of the issue.

"We agree that 'timeframes for consultations should be proportionate and realistic' but for representative organisations like CIWM it would not be reasonable to expect a member response in a two week period.

"The consultation guidance also states that in some cases there will be no requirement for consultation if interested groups have been engaged in the policy making process. As a multi-sector representative body, CIWM could have an interest in many issues under discussion and there is a danger that bodies such as ourselves may be excluded altogether if there is no consultation period, or one so restricted that responses cannot be prepared and delivered."

CLICK HERE for the ministerial statement