On Oct 4, 2023, BusinessEurope, in partnership with its Italian member federation Confindustria, hosted the second of its SME Roadshow events in Rome. The event featured keynote speeches from Roberta Metsola, European Parliament President, and Thierry Breton, EU Commissioner for Internal Market, focusing on SMEs’ path to the twin green and digital transitions in the context of the European Commission’s recently announced SME Relief Package.
Fabrice Le Saché, Chair of BusinessEurope’s Entrepreneurship & SME Committee, emphasized the importance of the Commission's proposals for SMEs: “The Commission’s proposals to simplify procedures and reduce reporting requirements for SMEs can play an important role in their green and digital transitions. BusinessEurope also asks for continued political commitment, across the Commission, to further improving the SME Test and to regularly evaluating its effectiveness. Moreover, capping payment terms in B2B transactions could help increase SMEs’ cash flow and allow for more investments in the twin transitions but protection of contractual freedom is a key element of the current directive and must be preserved.”
Giovanni Baroni, President of Piccola Industria Confindustria, expressed pride in hosting the event in Rome and highlighted the significance of supporting SMEs: “We are proud to have hosted the second stage of the BusinessEurope SME Roadshow in Rome. It was a precious opportunity to share proposals and define synergies on a fundamental strategic priority for Europe: the competitiveness of SMEs. European SMEs are committed to ensuring Europe's sustainable transition. This is why it is important to continue to support them with investment incentives also in the integration of ESG criteria and guarantee them access to a qualified workforce. Italy has the largest number of SMEs in Europe, generating 64.3% of our national added value and almost 77% of jobs. Our SMEs need rapid regulatory simplification in Europe, especially in the field of sustainability.”
BusinessEurope’s recent position on the SME Relief Package can be found on their website, providing insights into their ongoing efforts to advocate for policies that support the growth and sustainability of small and medium-sized enterprises in Europe.