At the meeting of the Commission for Citizenship, Governance, Institutional and External Affairs (CIVEX), ECR Member Matteo Bianchi has been appointed rapporteur on the opinion “A Simpler, Clearer and Better Enforced EU Rulebook”, marking an important step in advancing a more efficient and pragmatic European regulatory framework. 

The opinion is part of a broader European Commission effort to simplify EU legislation and improve its implementation, with a strong focus on subsidiarity, proportionality, and effective enforcement. 

The nomination of Matteo Bianchi reflects the ECR Group’s consistent political commitment to simplifying the EU’s regulatory environment. For years, the Group has advocated a decisive shift towards clearer, lighter and more proportionate legislation, ensuring that EU rules remain focused on added value while avoiding unnecessary administrative burden on regions, municipalities and businesses. 

In this context, the forthcoming opinion will provide a key opportunity to reinforce the role of local and regional authorities in shaping better regulation, while addressing persistent challenges such as regulatory complexity, gold-plating and uneven enforcement across Member States.

The Commission’s initiative underpinning the opinion is structured around several core priorities, including simplifying rules by design, improving the better regulation framework, and ensuring stronger enforcement. For the ECR Group, these objectives align closely with its long-standing emphasis on subsidiarity and on limiting EU action to what is necessary and effective. 

The work on the opinion will see an exchange of views foreseen in September 2026, followed by adoption in CIVEX and later in plenary.