Just to give a few examples from my own direct business knowledge: gold plating on computer chips and connectors used to be about 200 nanometres.

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In December, Chancellor George Osborne told MPs he wanted to make sure that "gold plating of EU rules on things like habitats" were not putting "ridiculous costs" on firms.

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And that wasn't because the contractors were gouging or the services were gold-plating.

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And if it had introduced tougher rules, it asks whether it might have been criticised for being heavy-handed, while "gold-plating" regulations, when there was cross-party agreement on that light touch.

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Like solder perhaps, or simple gold bars for plating: these are simply not things that are being manufactured in the sense the law requires by those electronics companies.

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