Brussels, 05/09/2013 (Agence Europe) - The rapporteur on the European action plan for the retail trade trusts that retailers, especially small shops, will not be injured. Cornelis de Jong (GUE/NGL, Netherlands) presented his draft report on this to the parliamentary committee responsible for the internal market (IMCO) on Thursday 5 September. He explained that he had introduced social, employment and sustainability elements in the Commission's proposal but that in fact he was calling for reform of the retail sector as, as he pointed out, there are not only hypermarkets out there but also small traders. Albeit not against the large chains of shops, he did wish to see more retailer diversity. Also, he said, he was in favour of town centres that keep their shops and so remain alive. As a result, he explained he wanted through his report to sound out the Commission regarding flexibility on competition rules, but without falling into protectionism - a point that is receiving special attention from Christian Democrats and Liberals. De Jong also urges governments to avoid making the life of small shops difficult by introducing further tax hikes. He took the view that online trading is an opportunity not to be missed for small traders rather than a threat. (MD/transl.jl)