A rule individuals or firms are obliged to follow; or the procedure for deciding and enforcing such rules. Modern economies are subject to numerous forms of regulation. These may be designed to promote public health and safety: for example, rules on food hygiene and the coding of electrical wiring. They may be designed to promote competition and prevent unfair trading practices: for example, monopolies and mergers are controlled in most societies, and insider dealing is forbidden in many countries. Regulations may be set and enforced by government bodies, or by quasi-autonomous non-governmental organizations (quangos). In the last resort regulation relies on legal sanctions, but the largest proportion of effective regulation is done by the regulators setting standards which organizations then try to comply with as a matter of self-discipline. See also bank regulation; self-regulation.