Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2010-10-19-Speech-2-547"
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"en.20101019.23.2-547"2
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"Madam President, I believe this debate brings an important period of work to a close. The Commission, Parliament and the Council have decided to join together in giving a specific response to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) by implementing part of the Small Business Act. A directive will, I hope, be adopted tomorrow which will enable a great many SMEs in the European Union to breathe a sigh of relief.
The number of unpaid bills has been increasing for too long: last year, there was an 8% increase, and today bad debts total EUR 300 billion. This is a problem that leaves SMEs in extreme difficulties. They are often in danger of closing down because they cannot survive due to the failure by large companies and, especially, public authorities, to honour their commitments. I believe the Union’s institutions are ready to give a positive response for the EU economy. When the legislation that we are about to adopt is fully in force, roughly EUR 180 billion will be put back into circulation, which means stimulating growth and innovation initiatives in favour of SMEs.
As you know, access to credit is key to the development and increased competitiveness of our businesses. I therefore believe that the decision to support this directive proposed by the Commission is of great importance to our economy, because it finally provides an answer to millions of European enterprises and gives hope to millions of workers who have jobs thanks to the existence of such enterprises, which form the backbone of our economy.
I would like to thank the Belgian Presidency for the important part it played in mediation, and I also thank all the Members of the European Parliament who have worked hard during this stage, starting with Mrs Weiler, Mr Baldassarre and Mr De Angelis, as well as all the shadow rapporteurs, who made it possible to find a positive solution.
As a result of the harmonisation of payment periods for public bodies, which will have to pay their invoices within 30 days, I think we will inject a substantial amount of extra cash into companies’ coffers. These rules will also have the effect of strongly encouraging those public authorities that delay their payments to bring their management methods up to date as well. In fact, when a public body acquires goods or services, it has already included the funds for that spending in its budget. Therefore, it should not be difficult to pay its creditors punctually. It should also be emphasised that shorter payment periods will result in savings for the public authorities.
Another important point in the agreement is that businesses themselves will have to pay their invoices within 60 days, unless agreed otherwise between the parties on terms that are not unfair to the creditor.
In conclusion, I must point out that the Member States will remain free to keep or adopt provisions that are more favourable to the creditor than is necessary under the directive. Consequently, this legislative document does not prevent Member States from adopting shorter payment periods or harsher penalties.
Madam President, honourable Members, this new directive shows the Union’s determination to give Europe’s enterprises, and especially SMEs, a decisive boost to get through the economic crisis, which the Commission intends to tackle by means of a series of actions. We have just tabled the communication on innovation and next week, we will also table the one on the new industrial policy, and innovation and industrial policy cannot be put into practice without there being access to credit.
Tomorrow, Parliament, in agreement with the Council Presidency and the European Commission, will provide a concrete response to these expectations."@en1
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