According to a study by Eurochambres published on Thursday 5 October, the European Commission will not respect its own guidelines regarding the evaluation of the needs of SMEs.
“This is the third time that we’ve conducted such an analysis of how well the European Commission respects its own guidelines on the SME test” stated Arnaldo Abruzzini, CEO of Eurochambres. He added that although the guidelines have changed, the overall picture is consistently unsatisfactory.
This study covers 13 impact studies published between July 2015 and January 2017, particularly within context of the legislative acts on posted workers, geo-blocking, insolvency and in this respect, the organisation’s conclusions are negative. According to the study by Eurochambres, the quality of the SME tests in the impact studies carried out by the Commission ahead of the legislative initiatives are positive in fewer than a third of the cases analysed.
The organisation puts forward several recommendations to improve the tests. First of all, it suggests that the European Commission guidelines be more effectively applied by its services. Secondly, in calls for a 12-week public consultation available in all official European Union languages that will be based around targeted consultation methods.
The authors of the study also want the SMEs’ point of view to be clearly included in the impact studies and in a way that is differentiated from that of major enterprises. The study emphasises that particular attention should focus on different kinds of SMEs on the basis of their size (micro, small and medium).
Eurochambres considers it necessary that the impact studies lead to a more detailed analysis of the costs and benefits of a legislative proposal for SMEs. In this regard, the SMEs are also calling for a distinction to be made between themselves and major companies but also between the different kinds of SME. This study proposes the systematic use of data provided by Eurostat in an effort to more effectively estimate costs and benefits.
The organisation also considers that it is necessary for the European Commission services to obtain assistance in the implementation of the test on SMEs before that impact study is submitted to the Regulatory Scrutiny Board, in charge of assessing the quality of projects in the impact analysis reports at the European Commission.
Finally, the study also calls for the Regulatory Scrutiny Board to more systematically ensure that these tests on SMEs are correct before publishing a positive opinion on a specific impact study. (Original version in French by Pascal Hansens)