"regressive policy" is a correct and usable phrase in written English.
You can use it to refer to any policy that involves taking a step back or that involves taking away something that had been previously available. For example, "The new government has recently implemented a regressive policy that removes many of the rights that had been previously available to citizens."
A more regressive policy would be hard to find, right?
I say designed because you don't introduce a regressive policy by accident.
Very senior female politicians, both Conservative and Labour, have blocked any reform to this highly regressive policy.
In reality, however, it would be a hugely regressive policy change, imposing severe burdens on lower- and middle-income Americans while barely affecting the wealthy.
In a similarly regressive policy move, the okada motorbikes that served as commuter vehicles for millions were banned in Lagos this fall.
David Cameron's regressive policy to end the current AS-level qualification will close the window of opportunity for many young people wanting to go to university.
The Liberal Democrats were not punished for their pro-EU approach; they were punished for standing on a progressive platform, then imposing regressive policies.
After more than three years of steady criticism for its regressive policies on air pollution, the Bush administration is enjoying well-deserved praise for a new regulatory initiative that will greatly reduce harmful emissions from diesel-powered construction equipment and other off-road machinery.
Among his charges: sociologists ignore racism and the role of the state in creating ghettos; they offer sanitized portraits of the urban poor instead of rigorous analysis of the reasons for their plight; and, worse, their work ends up providing unwitting legitimacy to regressive policies on race and poverty.
But he has also flirted with highly regressive policies favored by Republican élites, such as slashing the corporate tax rate, reducing the top rate of income tax, and getting rid of the federal estate tax, which affects only the wealthiest American families.
Prof Acton blames the Home Office for its "negative rhetoric" and "regressive" policies.
