The cost of registration - A comparison is made between the increase in retention fees over 10 years and the cost of living, with references to Government policy.

The amendment to the Architects Act of June 2008 - Case Study 3, Part 1, giving an appraisal of the statutory regulations and describing the predicted early consequence: an increase in the human resources retained by the Board.

Parliamentary written replies - describing how the cost of retention has been disproportionate to the number of those on the register.

Conflicts of Interest : s.4(2A) of the Architects Act 1997 (as amended June 2008)

Case Study 3, Part 2 - in the public interest?

Case Study 3, Part 3 - the European Commission takes a view that "the UK authorities have transposed Directive 2005/36/EC in an incorrect manner".

Case Study 3, Part 4 - an unsatisfactory reply from the Department of Communities and Local Government is criticised by the inquiring architect.

Case Study 3, Part 5 - the Commission writes formally to the United Kingdom.

Case Study 3, Part 6 - a credibility gap emerges?

Case Study 3, Part 7 - New UK Regulations, but is the Directive itself lawful?

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The cost of registration

Under the Architects Act, section 8, the Board may require registered persons to pay a retention fee of a prescribed amount if they wish their names to be retained in the Register in any calendar year after that in which the names were entered. 

The cost of the retention fee may be correlated with changes in the Retail Prices Index to show that the cost of retention, in real terms, has risen greatly.  See a graph. 

Although the Architects Act is notable in that it makes no reference whatever to regulation, the Architects Registration Board has taken that role upon itself.  In his forward to the 2005 Report of the Better Regulation Commission (authors of " Less is More"), Sir David Arculus said: "Perhaps our most important achievement has been to put the spotlight on the cost of regulation ... We have estimated that the cost of regulation to the UK economy is between 10% - 12% of GDP - or over £100 billion - similar to the annual take in income tax ..." 

Tony Blair, as Prime Minister, in a speech to the Institute of Public Policy Research said: "Not every 'scandal' requires a regulatory response.  Bad people will find a way round the law no matter how good the law is.  Spending hundreds of millions of pounds to reduce the risk to zero may be a foolish way of prioritising".

Since its establishment in 1997, the Architects Registration Board has secured penalties against an average of less than four architects a year.  There are about 30,000 on the register.  The cost to the profession of registration during that period has been over £25 million at 2008 prices.

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