"Red tape is a derisive term for excessive regulation or rigid conformity to formal rules that is considered redundant or Bureaucracy and hinders or prevents action or decision-making. It is usually applied to government , corporation and other large organizations. Red tape generally includes the filling out of seemingly unnecessary paperwork, obtaining of unnecessary licenses, having multiple people or committees approve a decision and various low-level rules that make conducting ones affairs slower, more difficult, or both.

Origins

The origins of the term are somewhat obscure, but it is first noted in historical records in the 16th century, when Henry VIII of England besieged Pope Clement VII with around eighty or so petitions for the annulment of his marriage to Catherine of Aragon A photo of the petitions from Thomas Wolsey and others, now stored in the Vatican archives, can be seen on page 160 of "Saints and Sinners, a History of The Popes", by Eamon Duffy (published by Yale University Press in 1997). The pile of documents can be viewed rolled and stacked in their original condition, each one sealed and bound with the obligatory red tape, as was the custom. The tradition continued through to the 17th and 18th century. Although Charles Dickens is believed to have used the phrase before Thomas Carlyle p.1152, Brewers Dictionary of Phrase & Fable, 17th Edition; Revised by J Ayto, 2005 the English practice of binding documents and official papers with red tape was popularized in the writings of Carlyle protesting against official inertia with expressions like "Little other than a red tape Talking-machine, and unhappy Bag of Parliamentary Eloquence". To this day, most barristers Brief (law) are tied in a pink-coloured ribbon known as "pink tape" or "legal tape". Government briefs are usually bound with white tape, introduced as an economy measureto save the expense of dyeing the tape red. Traditionally, official Holy See documents were also bound in red cloth tape. All American Civil War veterans records were bound in red tape, and the difficulty in accessing them led to the current use of the term,http://www.civilwarhome.com/redtape.htm Red Tape, North and South, in the Civil War ] but there is evidence (as detailed above) that the term was in use in its modern sense sometime before this. This explanation was popularized by the American political drama The West Wing when the series President, President Bartlett told the story to his Personal Aide, Charlie Young ("The Women of Qumar"). Karl Marx wrote about the phenomenon of changing from one person in control of a complete task, to having multiple people each with specialties in specific tasks. He saw this occurring as society shifts from a Manorialism to a capitalism system. Although Marx drew different conclusions about this trend, it is often this abstraction among workers that is the source of red tape. This interpretation would explain why it is often perceived that the presence of red tape is increasing. The words "Red Tape" have been used in many protest songs throughout the 1960s-1980s. The most famous example of this is found in Metallicas "...And Justice For All", which features Lady Justice being torn down and money falling from her balances.

Red tape reduction

The "cutting of red tape" is a popular electoral and policy promise. In the United States, a number of committees have discussed and debated Red Tape Reduction Acts

See also

* Busy work * Micromanagement * Paperwork Reduction Act

Anecdote

The hardcore punk band Circle Jerks title the last song on their first album "group sex "Red tape".

References

Books

*Barry Bozeman (2000) Bureaucracy and Red TapePrentice-Hall Publishing. *OECD (2006) Cutting red tape; national strategies for administrative simplification OECD Editions, Paris.

External links

*http://web.mac.com/victorperton/iWeb/Regulatory_Reform/PM%27s%20Red-Tape%20Taskforce.html Australian Taskforce on Reducing the Regulatory Burdens on Business – Rethinking Regulation] *m:Instruction creep *http://www.law.monash.edu.au/centres/regstudies/ Monash Centre for Regulatory Studies] *http://www.cfib.ca/legis/ontario/red_tape.asp 10-Point Plan for Regulatory Reform in Ontario] *http://web.mac.com/victorperton/iWeb/Regulatory_Reform/Perton%27s%20Papers.html Regulatory Affairs Resources] *http://www.tuc.org.uk/em_research/tuc-6257-f0.cfm Unravelling the Red Tape Myths - UK] *http://www.internationalbusinessreport.com/Press-room/2008/Business-constraints.asp Shortage of skilled workers knocks red tape off top of business constraints league table - Grant Thornton IBR] Category:Slang Category:Organizational studies and human resource management de:Amtsschimmel fr:Impôt papier ml:ചുവപ്പുനാട mr:लाल फीत ja:繁文縟礼 ru:Бюрократизм