The Deregulation and Contracting Out Act 1994 (c. 40) is an Act

Act of Parliament

An Act of Parliament is a statute enacted as primary legislation by a national or sub-national parliament. In the Republic of Ireland the term Act of the Oireachtas is used, and in the United States the term Act of Congress is used.In Commonwealth countries, the term is used both in a narrow...

 of the Parliament of the United Kingdom

Parliament of the United Kingdom

The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London...

. It introduced wide ranging measures aiming to cut government expenditure and bureaucracy. An example is the abolition of the licensing system for employment agencies under the Employment Agencies Act 1973

Employment Agencies Act 1973

Employment Agencies Act 1973 is a United Kingdom Act of Parliament and part of a wider body of UK agency worker law. It regulates the conduct of employment agencies which recruit and manage temporary and permanent labour. It applies to approximately 17,000 employment agencies operating in the UK...

.

It also contained so called Henry VIII clauses, which meant ministers could amend previous primary legislation through order (i.e. drafted by the Secretary of State without a vote in Parliament).

The Act was largely repealed and replaced by the Regulatory Reform Act 2001

Regulatory Reform Act 2001

The Regulatory Reform Act 2001 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It replaced the Deregulation and Contracting Out Act 1994...

.