Next Parliament ‘must think small’

By Karen Carstens

Date: 29/04/04

THE European Parliament has consistently failed to take SME concerns into consideration and needs to think "smaller" in future, a coalition of businesses warned yesterday.

UEAPME, the Brussels-based umbrella association representing some 11 million European small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), called in a meeting with a cross-party group of MEPs on the Parliament to stop passing laws that often go down well with big companies, but seriously irk the remaining 99% of businesses in Europe.

"Our main criticism is that legislation at European level is done for a minority of businesses," said UEAPME spokesman Raphael Anspach. "Theoretically speaking, all the MEPs are in favour of SMEs," he added. "However, when it comes to concrete legislation, they often "change jackets" - with disastrous results for us."

The outgoing Parliament did "think small first" on a few key issues, "such as the reduction of VAT rates on labour intensive services", said UEAPME Secretary-General Hans-Werner Müller. But it also often "missed chances to back SMEs and, even worse, took decisions against their interests", he added.

In a memorandum presented to the MEPs, the association demands that the next Parliament conduct more business-impact assessments vis-à-vis SMEs before passing legislation, grant SME representatives a greater presence at hearings and start funding pro-SME think-tanks. German conservatives Ingo Friedrich, Alexander Radwan, Thomas Mann and Dieter-Lebrecht Koch, plus UK Liberal Democrat Sarah Ludford, UK Conservative Roger Helmer and French Socialist Catherine Guy-Quint, were among the MEPs the association's advocates met.

Other positive signs include the "reappearance" of a defunct all-party "SME Intergroup" and "strengthening" of a European People's Party "SME Circle" in the Parliament. In a related development, a poll conducted for the eurosceptic New Frontiers Foundation found that most British small businesses think the EU is bad for business and oppose Europe's draft constitution.

In the poll, released yesterday, 59% of companies surveyed claim an EU constitution would be "bad for my business", compared to 18% who said it would be good. 47% said the EU was bad overall for business against 27% in favour.

According to UEAPME, an umbrella organisation representing 11 million European small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), the outgoing European Parliament has had a mixed track record on SME policy. A memorandum presented to MEPs by UEAPME demands that the next Parliament consult more with SMEs before passing legislation, involve SMEs in hearings and start funding pro-SME think-tanks.

http://www.ueapme.com/docs/press_releases/pr_2004/040428_EP%20memorandum.pdf http://www.ueapme.com/docs/press_releases/pr_2004/040428_EP%20memorandum.pdf

http://www.ueapme.com/ http://www.ueapme.com/

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