23 Amendments of Juan Carlos GIRAUTA VIDAL related to 2014/2210(INI)
Amendment 2 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 3 a (new)
Citation 3 a (new)
- having regard to the 2009 Report of the Group of Experts for the European Commission ‘Overview of family- business-relevant issues: research, policy measures and existing studies’,
Amendment 22 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital D
Recital D
D. whereas the Commission’s group of experts on family businesses completed its work more than five years ago, and no new initiative has been launched since then at EU level addressing; whereas there is still a lack of research and data at national and European levels to understand the special needs and structures of family businesses ;
Amendment 30 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital F
Recital F
F. whereas it is impossible, due to the lack of a definition, to gather comparable data in the EU Member States in order to draw attention to the special situation and contribution of family businesses;
Amendment 49 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Emphasises that family businesses demonstrate a high degree of social responsibility towards their staff and that they generally take a more sustainable and longer-term approach to the economic future of the business (by acting as ‘honourable businessmen’, responsible owners or stewards) than non- family businesses and thus make an important contribution to Europe’s competitiveness and create and maintain jobs;
Amendment 59 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Stresses that, because of their history, family businesses are very rooted in a particular location and thus also create and maintain jobs in rural and in less attractive areas; calls on the Commission and the Member States, therefore, to provide the necessary cost-efficient infrastructure in order to ensure the competitiveness of such businesses;
Amendment 67 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2 a (new)
Paragraph 2 a (new)
2a. Recognises that family businesses are the single biggest source of employment in the private sector; therefore, what is beneficial to continuity, renewal and growth in the family business sector is conducive to continuity, renewal and growth in the European economy;
Amendment 71 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Notes that highly specialised family businesses in particular play an important role as suppliers and innovators to larger companies and that, given their long-term and intergenerational approach to business, they provide the companies they supply with material security and thereby make a significant contribution to economic growth;
Amendment 88 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Calls on the Member States, with this in mind, to ensure that national rules on the taxation of inheritance and gifts and on corporate taxation do notsupport rather than discriminate against equity financing which is so vital for family businesses; points out, in this connection, that in Hungary inheritance tax on business assets has been abolished;
Amendment 91 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5 a (new)
Paragraph 5 a (new)
5a. Call on the Member States, with this in mind, to examine the debt-bias within their tax codes, assessing its impact on the financing structure of companies and the level of investment; calls on the Commission to examine any tax driven discrimination of equity financing against the background of fair competition
Amendment 112 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7 a (new)
Paragraph 7 a (new)
7a. Recognises that the fiscal, legal and administrative environment in which family businesses (and owner-managed businesses) operate is defined by the combined effect of corporate legislation and private law;
Amendment 118 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8
Paragraph 8
8. Notes that 87% of family businesses are convinced that maintaining control of the business is one of the key factors of success4 ; notes that, according to the Commission’s ‘Entrepreneurship 2020 Action Plan’5 , the transfer of a business from one generation to the next is the greatest possible challenge facing family businesses; highlights that early preparation and specialised training for the parties involved can contribute to the success of such a transfer; ___________ 4 European Family Business Barometer, June 2014. 5 COM(2012)0795.
Amendment 122 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8 a (new)
Paragraph 8 a (new)
8a. Calls on Member States to simplify administrative procedures and taxation systems in particular to take into account the specific challenges of small and medium-sized enterprises and family businesses ;
Amendment 124 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8 b (new)
Paragraph 8 b (new)
8b. Urges the Commission and Member States to take action to develop digital entrepreneurship and digital skills in order for family businesses to take full advantage of the use of digital technologies ;
Amendment 139 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9 a (new)
Paragraph 9 a (new)
9a. Recalls that the existence of a one- stop-shop for enterprises can facilitate all the procedures they have to undertake, including those related to their transfer.
Amendment 144 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9 b (new)
Paragraph 9 b (new)
9b. Notes that promoting entrepreneurship in schools and other educational settings is of key importance to develop more entrepreneurial mindsets; education should include specific family business issues such as ownership, succession and family governance, together with more general information such as the importance of innovation as a means to re-invent the business;
Amendment 149 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9 c (new)
Paragraph 9 c (new)
9c. Stresses that family businesses’ contribution to innovation could be enhanced by promoting their participation in private-public partnerships and clusters and by fostering their collaboration with research institutions;
Amendment 151 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9 d (new)
Paragraph 9 d (new)
9d. Notes that Malta is introducing a Family Business Act which aims to support family businesses and addresses their concerns;
Amendment 152 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9 e (new)
Paragraph 9 e (new)
9e. Calls on the Commission to promote the adoption of a common definition of family business in the EU in order to facilitate the search and comparison of data related to their characteristics, circumstances and the difficulties they face;
Amendment 160 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10
Paragraph 10
10. Calls on the Commission to commission regular and adequately financed studies that analyse the importance of ownership for the success and survival of a business and highlight the specific challenges facing family businesses; calls on the Commission also to collect enough data on family businesses in the various Member States both to allow a comparison of the situation of family businesses, as well as a comparison of family businesses and non-family businesses, and to promote exchanges of examples of good practices;
Amendment 178 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12
Paragraph 12
12. Calls on the Commission in the meantime, as part of its regulatory impact assessment, to establish a ‘family business test’ modelled on the SME test, in order to be able determine the effect of certain legal acts on family businesses in advance and thereby avoid unnecessary red tape for family businesses, especially paying attention to the combined effect of corporate legislation and private law;
Amendment 188 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13
Paragraph 13
13. Calls on the Commission to establish a permanent working group internally that specifically addresses the needs and characteristics of family businesses, regularly reports to Parliament and the Member States and, acts as a contact at European level for family business for specific issues particularly relating to European legislation, encourages exchanges of best practices between Member States family business organisations and disseminates guidelines and standard texts and solutions for family business to overcome their specific problems;
Amendment 194 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 14
Paragraph 14
14. Calls on the Commission to strive to strengthen entrepreneurship throughout the EU and to create an favourable environment for business excellence;
Amendment 202 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 15
Paragraph 15
15. Calls on the Commission to urgently draw up a communication analysing the role ofon family businesses with a view to boosting the competitiveness of the EU’s economy by 2020, and to produce a road map listing the measures likely to strengthen the economic environment and development of family businesses in the EU;