Opinion of the Economic and Social Committee on the 'European Charter for Small Companies'
Date: 2000-05-24
Institutions: European Economic and Social Committee
Subjects: European charter, aid to undertakings, small business

18.7.2000

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 204/57

Opinion of the Economic and Social Committee on the ‘European Charter for Small Companies’

(2000/C 204/13)

On 11 April 2000 the Economic and Social Committee, acting under Rule 23 (3) of its Rules of Procedure,
decided to draw up an opinion on the ‘European Charter for Small Companies’.

The Section for the Single Market, Production and Consumption, which was responsible for preparing
the Committee’s work on the subject, adopted its opinion on 3 May 2000. The rapporteur was Mr Pezzini.

At its 373rd plenary session (meeting of 24 May 2000), the Economic and Social Committee adopted the
following opinion with 70 votes in favour and three abstentions.

1.

Introduction

1.1.
The Committee welcomes the decision of the Lisbon
European Council to draw up a charter for small companies.
This is particularly important in view of the challenge which
the information society poses for all companies, and for small
companies in particular. The decision bears witness to the
greater understanding which the Member States and the
Commission have been showing to small companies, especially
over the last few years.

1.2.
Small companies account for over 95 % of all business-
es in the EU, and employ around two thirds of the total
workforce. Each year, they generate between 60 and 80 % of
all new jobs. The Committee also notes that small companies
do not have the same financial and human resources as large
firms, so any measures which do not cater for their special
circumstances could pose a real obstacle to economic develop-
ment and job creation.

It must be remembered that the general heading of
1.3.
small companies, which covers all activities, includes micro-
businesses (fewer than ten employees), one-person businesses,
and craft firms. These businesses play a universally recognised
role in the creation of new enterprise and as a seedbed for
work-based training and the teaching of practical skills (1).

1.6.
The criteria for evaluating the results achieved need to
be improved, using objective criteria such as the business start-
up rate, the lifespan of new companies, the cost of credit, and
the availability of risk capital for small companies.

These criteria could be used to establish a scoreboard of the
aims and results achieved. The ESC could participate in this
with the help of an ad hoc group, which could hold hearings
in individual countries.

CHARTER FOR SMALL COMPANIES (2)

1. Community activities and programmes, and measures
promoted by the Member States, must cater for the
situation and needs of small companies.

2. School curricula and education and training bodies must
help to stress the importance of entrepreneurship and the
social and economic value of the work undertaken by
small businessmen and their employees.

3. Consideration must be given to the cultural aspects
and the social and contractual ramifications of relations
between those working, at various levels, in small com-
panies.

1.4.
The Committee asks the Commission to press ahead
with the programme scheduled under the ‘integrated measures’
and the BEST recommendations,
in cooperation with the
Member States.

4. Support should be provided for schemes which help small
companies (owners and employees) gain access to training,
information, research and innovation, and boost their
organisational and administrative capabilities and sustain-
able development.

1.5.
The Commission and the Council should also continue
to provide strategic assistance for small companies and craft
businesses, using appropriate methods and instruments and
the dissemination of best practice, in close consultation with
socio-economic players.

5. Apprenticeship should be encouraged, as a way of instilling
a spirit of enterprise in young people and as a pathway to
success for particularly creative young people. The barriers
which prevent young trainees from moving within the EU
must be removed.

(1) COM(95) 502 final — The craft industry and small enterprises:

(2) According to the conclusions of the Lisbon Council: fewer than

Keys to growth and employment in Europe.

50 employees.

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Official Journal of the European Communities

18.7.2000

6. Small companies must be given easier access to finance,
and the business succession process should be made less
burdensome.

10. All the checks required under environmental and occu-
pational safety legislation should be better coordinated at
national level.

7. Some aspects of bankruptcy law should be reviewed and

brought into line with business developments.

8. Public policies must facilitate market access for small
companies, and especially for those in disadvantaged
regions, removing existing restrictions, reducing unwar-
ranted costs, and supporting the formation of business
associations and the development of national and inter-
national networks.

11. The implementation of rules governing relations between
individual companies, and between companies and the
authorities, should be streamlined and speeded up, by
making greater use of the presumption that ‘silence equals
consent’ and by introducing an Advocate-General for small
companies.

12. The taxation system should be further simplified, and
micro-businesses with a very small turnover should be
exempted from excessive tax obligations.

9. A one-stop shop, with a single document and identification
number, should be used for the start-up and development
of small companies.

13. It must be made easier for small companies to participate
in all Community programmes, especially those which
concern research and innovation.

Brussels, 24 May 2000.

The President

of the Economic and Social Committee

Beatrice RANGONI MACHIAVELLI