European Union Wants One‐​Size‐​Fits‐​All Regulation

European bureaucracies such as the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development and the European Commission are infamous for their anti-tax competition campaigns, but the zeal to harmonize is not limited to fiscal policy. The European Commission has set an explicit goal of exporting EU regulation to the rest of the world. If successful, this would be an unfortunate development. Competition among regulatory regimes helps control excessive government. But if an international bureaucracy succeeds in becoming a global "standard setter," then politicians will exploit that monopoly position to impose more onerous regulatory burdens. That certainly will be the case if the bureaucrats in Brussels succeed in this latest push for regulatory harmonization. As the Financial Times indirectly notes, the Euro-crats are not very sympathetic to markets:

Brussels wants the rest of the world to adopt the European Union’s regulations, the European Commission will say this week. A Commission policy paper that examines the future of the Union’s single market says European single market rules have inspired global standard-setting in areas such as product safety, the environment, securities and corporate governance. ...The paper calls on the EU to encourage other jurisdictions to follow suit – for example by “promoting European standards internationally through international organisation and bilateral agreements”. ...The EU’s drive to establish itself as the pacesetter for worldwide business regulation could well lead the bloc into conflict with the US and other trading partners. US officials have often voiced concern about the Union’s growing clout as a global standard-setter, and the two sides have clashed over issues such as rules for the chemicals industry and the EU’s stance on genetically modified foods. ...The two sides have very different regulatory philosophies, with the EU placing a heavy emphasis on consumer protection and environmental legislation while the US tends to promote a more market-based approach. Some critics of the European approach argue that the Union’s stance on issues such as GM foods may also reflect a desire to protect the region’s commercial interests.