EU Intelligence » The ESBA Bulletin » 2006
- 15 December 2006 - Vol 8 No. 18
- 05 December 2006 - Vol 8 No. 17
- 07 November 2006 - Vol 8 No. 16
- 23 October 2006 - Vol 8 No. 15
- 09 October 2006 - Vol 8 No. 14
- 21 September 2006 - Vol 8 No. 13
- 28 July 2006 - Vol 8 No. 12
- 12 June 2006 - Vol 8 No. 10
- 24 May 2006 - Vol 8 No. 9
- 12 May 2006 - Vol 8 No. 8
- 18 April 2006 - Vol 8 No. 7
- 03 April 2006 - Vol 8 No. 6
- 15 March 2006 - Vol 8 No. 5
- 27 February 2006 - Vol 8 No. 4
- 14 February 2006 - Vol 8 N°3
- 27 January 2006 - Vol 8 N° 2
- 16 January 2006 - Vol 8 N° 1
ESBA BULLETIN of 16 January - Volume 8 – No. 1
Quote of the Week:
It is better to be making the news than taking it; to be an actor rather than a critic.
Winston Churchill (1874-1965)
Headlines
- EU/Austrian Presidency: Presidency to focus on ‘growth and jobs’ and ‘future of Europe’
In Brief
- EU / FP7: Commission intends to simplify rules for participation in FP7
- EU / Taxation: Commission announces ‘home state’ tax plans for SMEs
- EU / Economy: Business Climate Indicator shows marked improvement in euro area
- EU / Employment: Survey findings support flexible working time
- EU / SMEs: Commission releases results of SME statute study
COMING UP
Headlines
EU/Austrian Presidency: Presidency to focus on ‘growth and jobs’ and ‘future of Europe’
On 9 January in Brussels, the Austrian government discussed its plans for the Austrian Presidency of the European Union with representatives from the European Commission. In a press release following the meeting, the Austrian Chancellor outlined Austria’s intention to focus on distinct areas in the first and second half of the Presidency. In order to ‘give Europe fresh impetus’, the three months up to the March Summit will be dedicated to creating growth and jobs. To this end, the Chancellor singled out the promotion of SMEs and attention to research and development as areas of primary importance.
The second half of the Austrian Presidency will concentrate on the debate surrounding the future of Europe. A highlight of this will be a broad public debate to take place on 9 May, which is Europe Day. The culmination of this period will be the June Summit. Issues of importance will include social cohesion and regional development.
Also on 9 January, Austrian finance minister and President of the ECOFIN Council, Karl-Heinz Grasser issued a statement concerning the implementation of national reform programmes, set up to enable member states to achieve the goals of the Lisbon Strategy. He asserted that the Austrian Presidency requests that the Commission provide specific ‘tailor-made’ recommendations for the implementation of these programmes
To see the Austrian Presidency press release regarding Chancellor Schüssel’s statement, go to:
http://www.eu2006.at/en/News/Press_Releases/January/0901_ek_ besuch.html
EU/Services Directive: Commission and Austrian Presidency expedite agreement on services directive
On 14 February, the proposal for a services directive will be voted by the European Parliament in first reading. Following a meeting on 9 January in Vienna between Commission President Barroso and Austrian Chancellor Schüssel, Mr. Barrosso announced that the Commission amended Commission proposal for consideration in the Council’s first reading would be ready for the March Summit of the European Council. This would open the possibility for reaching political agreement on the Directive during the Austrian Presidency, which ends on 30 June.
Both Mr. Barroso and Chancellor Schüssel emphasised the importance of ‘balance’ in the revised proposal. While Mr. Barroso stressed the need to take into account the concerns of particular sectors and member states, Mr. Schüssel emphasised the need to involve the social partners in the process. The development was welcomed by the Austrian Minister for Economics, Martin Bartenstein, who asserted that the internal market for services was one of the few areas in which Europe could achieve growth purely through internal change.
To see the Austrian Presidency press release regarding Minister Bartensteing’s statement, go to:
http://www.eu2006.at/en/News/Press_Releases/January/ 1001bartensteindienstleistungsrichtlinie.html
In Brief
EU / Research and Development : Commission intends to simplify rules for participation in FP7
The Commission has released a proposal to reduce the cost of participation in the Seventh Framework Programme for research and development. The proposal includes provisions regarding intellectual property, enabling participants to enter into a consortium agreement. In addition, three different types of grants will be made available to companies. These will cover eligible costs, lump sums, and flat-rate financing respectively. A maximum of 50% of eligible costs, not including receipts for research and demonstration activities, will be covered by Community funding. An additional 25% for research activities will be made available to certain organisations, including SMEs.
To see the Commission proposal, please go to:
http://europa.eu.int/eur-lex/lex/LexUriServ/site/en/com/ 2005/com2005_0705en01.pdf
To see the rapporteur’s draft report, go to :
http://www.europarl.eu.int/meetdocs/2004_2009/documents/pr/ 571/571052/571052en.pdf
EU / Taxation: Commission announces ‘home state’ tax plans for SMEs
On 10 January, the Commission announced plans to ease SMEs’ administrative burdens by permitting companies to calculate their profits by using the tax rules of their country of origin. The initiative will not be based on EU legislation, as it would be based on voluntary agreements between member states to respect each other’s tax systems. The Commission hopes that this will reduce the cost of tax compliance, which it estimates to be equivalent to 30% of the tax paid by SMEs, compared with 1.9% for large corporations. The scheme would run for five years, starting on 1 January 2007, after which time the Commission hopes to have instated a common corporate tax across the single market.
For detailed information regarding this proposal, please go to:
EU / Economy: Business Climate Indicator shows marked improvement in euro area
Following a drop in November 2005, the Business Climate Indicator (BCI) is nearing the high level which it was at one year ago. The positive outlook, which has been above the long term average since September 2005, is particularly strong for production. Although the assessment of stocks of finished products was subject to a less marked improvement, total order books, export order books and production expectations all pointed towards an upturn in the business outlook.
For full details regarding the Business Climate Indicator, please go to:
http://europa.eu.int/comm/economy_finance/indicators/ businessclimate_en.htm
EU / Employment: Survey findings support flexible working time
An EU-wide survey, conducted by the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions, has found that both managers and employees have generally had favorable experiences when using flexible working time. Reported benefits included greater job satisfaction, better adaptation of work hours to the workload and fewer missed days of work. A report on the survey will be released in April 2006.
For more information, please go the Foundation website:
www.eurofound.eu.int/areas/worklifebalance/ eswtfindings.htm
EU / SMEs: Commission releases results of SME statute study
At a conference organised on 14 December 2005 the European Commission study released its findings regarding the feasibility of a voluntary statute for European companies, also referred to as the EU SME statute. This system would allow European companies to register under the EU statute, rather than having a legal status relating to one of the member states. The study predicts that this would be particularly beneficial for businesses operating in several member states. Initial responses from business organisations have been equivocal. The dossier will now be taken on by DG Enterprise as part of the impending consultation on the modernisation of company law and corporate governance.
The consultation document will be published at the following address:
http://europa.eu.int/comm/internal_market/company/index_ en.htm
COMING UP
EU Institutions: Important Dates
16-19 Jan. 06 European Parliament Plenary Session (Strasbourg) –
19-21 Jan. 06 Informal Employment and Social Affairs Council
13-16 Feb. 06 European Parliament Plenary Session (Strasbourg) - vote on the service directive
13-16 March 06 European Parliament Plenary Session (Strasbourg)
Other SME related Events
18 January 2006 SME Intergroup Meeting on CIP, Strasbourg.
20-21 Jan. 06 Yes for Europea event in Vienna – More information and registration : secretariat@yes.be
27 January 2006 “Hungarian SMEs and their Outlook after EU Accession”, Budapest – organised by SME Union.
22-24 February 2006 IECER 2006The Interdisciplinary European Conference on Entrepreneurship Research, Regensburg, Germany – organised by the University of Regensburg:
21 March 2006 Brussels - “MAP Project 2.7/2004 - Stigma of failure and early warning tools”
Venue: Charlemagne Building - Conference organised by the Enterprise and Industry Directorate-General. More information will be soon available at:
http://www.europa.eu.int/comm/enterprise/events/ events.htm
13-14 June 2006 Vienna - “Conference on the European Charter for Small Enterprises”
Conference organised by the Enterprise and Industry Directorate-General
More information will be soon available DG Enterprise webpage.
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Page last updated: 16/01/2006 6:05:54 PM