Industry Council debates competitiveness and SME financing
The EU Industry Council, held in Brussels on 5 December 2001, debated key issues of competitiveness and SME financing. The Council adopted the conclusions on 'SMEs' access to finance' on the basis of the ministerial symposium held in Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium, on 24 and 25 October 2001 and the Commission staff working paper on 'Enterprises' access to finance.' During the debate, Austria called for further discussion of the effects of the Basel II process for deciding the capital adequacy of businesses. Austria said that the process could have a fundamental impact SMEs (small and medium sized enterprises) which tend to rely heavily on loan funding. Serge Kubla, Minister for economic affairs, SMEs, research and technology of the Walloon region, asked the forthcoming Spanish presidency to continue looking into the issue. Several competitiveness issues were also debated at the Council. Regulatory and administrative framework conditions were recognised as a serious impediment to the successful creation and development of businesses. It was suggested that an action plan on regulatory reform be drawn up to tackle the problem. The Council also recognised that restoring business and consumer confidence following the 11 September terrorist attacks in the USA will be key to reversing the economic downturn currently being experienced in the EU. There was also a call for the use of tax incentives and other measures to boost innovation in the European research area (ERA). In addition, delegations welcomed a project on the use of quantitative targets in enterprise policy, allowing Member States to choose their own set of indicators. The financing of coal and steel research after the ECSC (European Coal and Steel Community) Treaty expires on 23 July 2002 was also discussed at the Council. A delay between the expiry of this treaty and the ratification of the Nice Treaty may result in an institutional and legal vacuum. Enterprise Commissioner Erkki Likkanen said that the legal services of the Commission and the Council are reviewing the changeover in order to find a politically acceptable solution in the interests of all Member States. ECSC assets and liabilities, amounting to 1.6 billion euro, belong to Member States and with their consent will be transferred to the overall EU budget by 24 July 2002 to fund research activities within the coal and steel sector, the Council heard.