Foresight review on the future of regulatory systems

This Foresight Review examines how to regulate a world increasingly disrupted by new technologies, global dependencies, agile business models, and growing social awareness. 

Written by former Chief Executive of the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) Dr Richard Judge and strategic change expert Shirin Elahi, in collaboration with nearly 100 worldwide experts, the review explores how regulations, which have successfully supported the health and security of people and the economy for hundreds of years, may need to innovate in an increasingly disruptive environment.

The review focuses on regulatory systems – the combination of formal laws (regulations) and informal interactions between a variety of different but inter-reliant people and organisations that combine to shape behaviours and deliver positive safety outcomes.

These influences all need consideration when designing and applying governance frameworks in highly complex environments. Challenges may include networks such as energy, communications and water, where failure in one can spread to the others; emerging technologies that cross traditional regulatory boundaries or national borders, the management of valuable data that requires protecting as well as changing societal attitudes that are affecting public trust and compliance.

Existing regulatory systems already have weak points such as a lack of diverse thinking, failure to heed early warning signs, unclear accountabilities and knowledge gaps. These vulnerabilities could present more risk in a disruptive environment, amplifying their effects across the entire system.

• It is critical to understand the issue that is being regulated and to appreciate the strengths and limitations of different regulatory tools, as the most disruptive issues may need to be approached in radically different ways.
• Context is everything. There will be no ‘one size fits all’ solutions.
• Regulatory designs that cope better are likely to combine a number of characteristics: using systems thinking; taking a diverse and inclusive approach to sourcing ideas (avoiding siloes) and adopting an adaptive leadership style (acknowledging uncertainty, anticipating issues and flexing responses).
• But, big questions remain. To what extent would society accept experimentation with how issues are handled? Is it possible to ensure fair regulatory systems, when these may depend on who is at the table and whose voices are heard? Is it possible to differentiate between straightforward issues where established methods work well and those disruptive ones that create radically different demands, when the differences are not always self-evident and change with time?
• It’s important to take a diverse approach. The review drew on the knowledge and experience of global experts spanning many disciplines, industry sectors and nations. However, this knowledge is currently very fragmented. Making that diverse expertise more accessible and easier to share would add considerable value.
• The review concludes by recommending the development of an independent, inclusive and strongly applied ‘critical knowledge hub’ that would enable the collating and sharing of currently fragmented knowledge, ideas and innovation. The hub could support the adoption of more effective regulatory methods and raise awareness of emerging issues and in doing so, protect the lives and livelihoods of people around the globe for decades to come.

If you wish to use and reference the Foresight Review on the Future of Regulatory Systems, please include the following DOI: https://doi.org/10.60743/bkje-1e37

Example Citation in Harvard Style:

Lloyd's Register Foundation (2021) Foresight Review on the Future of Regulatory Systems. Lloyd's Register Foundation. doi: 10.60743/BKJE-1E37.