Team Leader: Better Regulation

This opportunity is only open to internal Scottish Government applicants who are currently 'Priority Movers'. Applications from individuals not currently on the Priority Mover list will be rejected and not considered.

The First Minister has made it clear that action on regulation will be a priority to “reimagine the state as an enabler, where complex and cumbersome bureaucracy is removed, and unnecessary regulation that gets in the way of investment and job creation simplified.”

Delivering economic growth is central to the new Programme for Government, underlining the First Minister’s commitment to create better economic certainty and stability, and making it easier to do business. This includes scrutinising future Scottish government regulation to ensure that its purpose, content and timing have regard to potential impacts on business and investment, including through robust Business and Regulatory Impact Assessments to support decision making, and improved engagement with business. It also includes working with Scotland’s regulators to consider where existing regulation and its accompanying administrative requirements could usefully be reviewed, simplified and/or removed.

Regulation serves a vital purpose, but to work, it must provide pathways not obstacles to investment, opportunity, and growth. This work of both C1 roles is therefore high profile with a significant degree of cross portfolio engagement and Ministerial interest and supports all four of the First Minister’s 4 priorities: Growing the Economy, Eradicating Child Poverty, Tackling the Climate Emergency and High Quality and Sustainable Public Services. Engagement with stakeholders, including Scotland’s regulators and policy counterparts in the UK Government, Welsh Government and the Northern Ireland Executive is also an important element of our Better Regulation work.

There are two C1 roles available across the Better Regulation Hub:

1. Team Leader – Regulatory Scrutiny
2. Team Leader – Regulatory Reform & Simplification

Please see the How to Apply section for more detail on specifying any role preference.

Team Leader – Regulatory Scrutiny

The focus of this role is to support systemic change in how we develop and deliver activity that has an impact on business and economic growth across the Government. This will require cross government engagement and proactive activity at pace in collaboration with partners, internally and externally.

The team comprises of 2 B3s and 3 B2s.

Team Leader – Regulatory Reform & Simplification

The central focus of this role is to work with the Scottish Regulators Forum to enhance collaboration among regulators across Scotland; to improve regulatory coherence, share best practice, and ensure that regulation supports economic growth while protecting communities and public interests. This includes providing the secretariat for regular meetings of the Forum. A key early task will be to oversee the process of finalising and securing agreement for a revised Scottish Regulators’ Strategic Code of Practice.

The role is also lead for engagement with the UKG and other devolved administrations on Late Payments/Office of the Small Business Commissioner, and on the Provision of Services Regulation.

The team comprises of 2 B3s.

Responsibilities

Team Leader – Regulatory Scrutiny

• Briefing and advice (for senior officials and/or Ministers) including delivery of advice and guidance to ministers and officials across government who are developing policy that places requirements on business.
• Maintaining a strategic overview of activity across government with an impact on business, to understand cumulative impact and advise ministers
• Collaboration with other areas within government to progress policy outcomes
• Improving policy design and development (incl. strategy, appraisal, impact assessment, monitoring, evaluation)
• Participation and engagement (with partners, stakeholders, officials across government)
• Programme oversight, sponsorship secretariat and development of the Independent Regulatory Review Group.
• Project and/or Programme management to deliver improvement plan/growth plan objectives
• Ownership of the BRIA Template and Toolkit maintenance, advice and guidance to officials, improving and streamlining template/toolkit, ensuring BRIAs are given prominence alongside other impact assessments through the ongoing IA review.
• People management and development (line and team management)
• Engage with Intergovernmental counterparts (within the UK)

Team Leader – Regulatory Reform & Simplification

• Briefing and advice (for senior officials and/or Ministers) including delivery of advice and guidance to ministers and officials across government in relation to potential for regulatory reform and simplification.
• Oversight and support to the work of the Scottish Regulators Forum, including provision of the secretariat for the bi-monthly meetings.
• Oversight of the finalisation, agreement and operationalisation of the revised Scottish Regulators’ Strategic Code of Practice.
• Leading for the SG on engagement with UKG and other devolved administrations on Late Payments legislation and the Late Payments Common Framework.
• Leading for the SG on engagement with UKG and other devolved administrations on the Provision of Services Regulation and the associated Common Framework.
• Collaboration with other areas within government to progress policy outcomes.
• Improving policy design and development (incl. strategy, appraisal, impact assessment, monitoring, evaluation)
• Participation and engagement (with partners, stakeholders, officials across government)
• People management and development (line and team management)

Both roles will be expected to contribute to wider Divisional and Directorate objectives, including those relating to business planning, governance and risk management, and to the cross-DBBR C Band Network.

Technical / Professional Skills:

• Policy Context and Purpose - Practitioner
• Participation and Engagement - Practitioner
• Working with Ministers - Practitioner
• Parliament and Law - Practitioner
• Policy Delivery and Systems - Practitioner

You can find out more about the skills required here - Detailed Descriptors

Experience:

• Experience of people management, engagement and collaboration, improvement and change management.

Working pattern

This role is a permanent level transfer position.

Our standard hours are 35 hours per week and we offer a range of flexible working options depending on the needs of the role, including Flexi-leave. Scottish Government staff in hybrid-compatible roles should aim to work in-person 40% of the time, either in an office or other agreed work location. If you have specific questions about the role you are applying for, please contact us.

How to Apply

Applications for this position will only be accepted from substantive C1 grade employees.

Please submit a statement outlining your suitability for the role, relevant skills and experience, and what you would bring to the team (maximum 500 words).

If you have a preference for one of the roles, or only wish to be considered for one and not the other, please specify this in your statement. Applications which do not specify a preference will be assumed to be happy with either of the two roles available.

Vacancies close at 23:59pm on Wednesday 30 September.

If you have questions about your application please contact:

• Team Leader - Regulatory Scrutiny: Hazel.Burgess@gov.scot
• Team Leader - Regulatory Reform and Simplification: Craig.Robertson@gov.scot

Selection Process

All applicants will be invited to an informal discussion with the hiring manager. There will be no formal testing or assessment.

Discussions are expected to be scheduled for w/c TBC.

Recruitment Principles

As a government organisation, we adhere to the Civil Service Commission Recruitment Principles and we investigate any complaints received in relation to recruitment cases.