‘Red tape’ is a revealing concept. To some, it represents bureaucracy (ideally of the foreign kind) ‘gone mad’. Think Brussels directives on the correct angle of a banana – a myth based on EU Commission Regulation No 2257/94 on standards for bananas.
To others, it is a misleading term for fundamental workers’ rights, consumer protections and environmental laws. Things people rather like. So my ears pricked up on the announcement today by the chancellor that he was going to cut red tape and axe EU rules as part of a major banking overhaul.
