11 Amendments of Lara COMI related to 2018/2545(RSP)
Amendment 38 #
Paragraph 4
4. UrgesCalls on the Commission to at least update the SME definition to take account of the rise in inflation and labour productivity since 2003; strongly supports an adjustment beyond the index-linking of inflation and labour productivity, in order to take account of future inflation, provide certainty and obviate the need for a rapid further adjustment in the next few yearsfinancial thresholds for the SME definition to take account of the rise in inflation since 2003;
Amendment 58 #
Paragraph 5
5. Points out that the employee numbers is not a criterion which can be used to draw up for accurate EU-wide comparisons, as labour productivity varies from one Member State to another; welcomes, therefore, a shift towards the criteria of turnover and balance sheet totalnumber of employees should remain the main criterion, so as to ensure full comparability across the Union, and that, as labour productivity varies from one Member State to another, labour productivity is not a suitable indicator to use to define SMEs;
Amendment 61 #
Paragraph 6
6. Stresses that there is a need to clarify not onlsimplify the terms ‘linked enterprise’ and ‘partner enterprise’ but alsoand SMEs’ status in mergers, and consortiums and; regards the simplification of procedures and the cutting of red tape as imperative; calls on the Commission in that connection to further simplify, red tape and the applicable rules as imperative;
Amendment 72 #
Paragraph 7
7. Welcomes the Commission’s start- up and scale-up initiative; views the promotion of entrepreneurship as important for economic growth in the EU; calls on the Commission to introduce a two-year transitional period during which enterprises which no longer qualify for SME status would retain that status;
Amendment 85 #
Paragraph 8
8. Takes the view that economic diplomacy instruments employed at EU level, such as the Mission for Growth, could be used to address economic challenges and exploit economic opportunities at global level more effectively; calls on the Commission to step up its efforts in that area, without creating duplicate structures; calls, in that connection, for an assessment of the possibility of introducing an ‘Export growth in relation to enterprise size’ indicator to be developed and for additional support to be offered to small enterprises with high export volumin order to improve information about the international competitiveness of SMEs, partly in order to monitor the effectiveness of European and national policies;
Amendment 100 #
Paragraph 9
9. Is concerned that, despite the considerable contribution they make to employment and growth by virtue of their productivity, MidCaps (enterprises that have outgrown the SME definition but still have typically medium-sized structures) are being neglected by policy-makers; calls, therefore, for a definition to be established for these companies based on the criteria that they are family-run, have high equity ratio and employ up to 3000 peopleNotes that MidCaps (enterprises that have outgrown the SME definition but still have typically medium-sized structures) contribute to employment and growth by virtue of their productivity and therefore deserve attention from the Member States and the European Union; considers at the same time that the definition of SMEs should devote particular attention to micro enterprises;
Amendment 108 #
Paragraph 10
10. Calls on the Commission, in addition to the priority EU measures for SMEs, to launch a MidCaps-oriented initiative using new funding, which would cover collaborative research access, digital to proceed further with its analysis of MidCaps, and to include in it an assessment of the existence and effectiveness of exisation strategies, export market development and an easing of the Basel specifications and data protection ruleng measures at Union level and in the Member States, including priority EU and Member State measures for SMEs;
Amendment 128 #
Paragraph 11
11. Takes the view that SME categorisation should not be exclusively based on the criteria of employee headcount, annual turnover and balance sheet totals; calls, therefore, for the criteria of ‘export-intensive’ (high level of exports in relation to number of employees), ‘largely independently-run’ and ‘high equity ratio’ - to be defined in due course - to be taken into account when categorising companies and for enterprises with these characteristics to at least be exempted from the relevant specific reporting obligations and/or for it to be made easier for them to access financial support, partly with a view to improving the effectiveness of European economic and industrial policy, the criteria of employee headcount, annual turnover and balance sheet totals should not be the only ones to be taken into account in statistics on the size of undertakings;
Amendment 134 #
Paragraph 12
12. Calls on the Commission to conduct a study into the impact of the SME definition on business development and on lock-in-effects, i.e. when enterprises deliberately opt not to expand in order to avoid bureaucratic burdens and other obligations that arise from the loss of their SME status;
Amendment 149 #
Paragraph 13
13. Calls on the Commission to conduct a feasibility study of sector- specific SME definitions in order to scrutinise the impact of such an approach on these sectors of the economy and the added avalue generated when set against the additional costs incurred, and to adapt the SME definition accordingly, should the study prove its feasibility;
Amendment 153 #
Paragraph 14
14. Calls for an SME category test to be made mandatory for all EU legislative proposals, beyond the Commission’s own undertakings; stresses that the result should be clearly indicated in the impact assessment; calls on the Commission and Member States to give such an undertaking in the next Interinstitutional Agreement on better law- making; considers the Small Business Act for Europe to be a highly effective instrument and would therefore like to see it brought back into line with how it was initially conceived, and also updated;