02/07/2020 (Agence Europe) – Small Business Standards (SBS), the association that represents European SMEs in the field of standardisation, announced their opposition, in a press release published on Wednesday 1 July, to the proposal made at the end of April by the French national standards body (AFNOR) to create a new ISO technical committee on social responsibility and to revise the ISO 26000 standard, which defines guidelines for companies that want to be socially responsible and environmentally friendly. According to the organisation, such a revision could lead to administrative burdens for businesses without fundamentally improving the situation. The guidelines are sufficient, the association said, explaining that they are easily applicable and do not serve as a basis for certification. If it is nevertheless decided to revise the standard, then SBS requests that a mechanism be put in place to ensure a balanced representation of the different stakeholders, including SMEs. (PH)