Van Hijum raises concern of family firms in Brussels
EPP-CoR members have voiced the concerns of SME's and family firms who are facing increased burden because of ongoing and new regulation. During a seminar on 'Reducing EU regulatory burdens on SMEs' held at the CoR, EPP-CoR members underlined that European SMEs are struggling with their post-pandemic economic recovery, amidst the soaring inflation, a severe energy crisis and rising labour market concerns. Meanwhile, the new EU legislation as part of the EU Green Deal imposes, be it directly or indirectly, unprecedented regulatory burdens on SMEs. Businesses tend to be increasingly vulnerable to regulations conceived and adopted at supranational level. In this regard, members discussed the better regulation principles and tools and how they can be applied to ensure an SME-proof regulatory regime at the EU level.
Eddy Van Hijum, Member of the Council of the Province of Overijssel said “There appears to have been an increase in legislative activity in recent years, in order to respond to the new geopolitical challenges and accelerate the twin transitions. Even though the EU institutions have put in place a better regulation toolbox, the reality on the ground is that still too many resources in our SMEs and family firms are spent on unproductive work, coping with red tape and regulatory complexities. This process has to be reversed if we aim for our European companies to prosper and remain competitive at the global level.”
Mr. van Hijum, also the CoR's Rapporteur on the SME Strategy, emphasised the Think Small, Think Regional Principle be put into practice more.
Members also discussed in detail the proposed Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CS3D), which is entering a crucial stage of negotiations ahead of the trilogues, with a particular focus on its expected impact on SMEs.
Deirdre Clune, Member of the European Parliament and EP Rapporteur for the IMCO Opinion said "The recently adopted IMCO opinion on CS3D was clear with the objective of fostering sustainable and responsible corporate behaviour throughout global supply chains while establishing legal certainty and a level-playing field for companies. To achieve this, we need to be sure to avoid creating any fragmentation in the internal market and to support SME’s with complying with any requirements that may stem from the Directive."
From his end Van Hijum said “The proposed CS3D aims to foster responsible corporate behaviour across value chains in order to mitigate the impact of businesses’ activities on human rights and the environment. While fully supporting these objectives, my concern as the CoR rapporteur on the SME Strategy is: how will these rules affect our SMEs? And what will be the implications for EU competitiveness at a time when we are desperately trying to retain our place in the world economy?”