Bill sets up regulatory bodies to decriminalise corporate law

It says this proposal will give stakeholders a more powerful right of recourse than currently exists in company law. The creation of a commission is in line with a policy document issued in May 2004 ahead of the drafting of the Bill, which recommended that company law should largely be decriminalised. According to a summary of the Bill by auditing firm Deloitte, it generally uses a system of administrative enforcement to ensure compliance. According to Deloitte, the Bill sets out detailed rules pertaining to compliance notices and the potential consequences for non-compliance with such notices. Although much of company law will be decriminalised certain actions will still result in a criminal offence, such as refusal to respond to a summons, declining to give evidence, or perjury. Full report in Business Report Draft Companies Bill