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SME emergency actions, exit and recovery strategies presented to Commission and Council

22 April 2020
by smeunited -- last modified 22 April 2020

The business environment for SMEs has dramatically changed for the worse in the past weeks. This has a huge negative impact on hundreds of thousands of Crafts and SMEs, and also threatens fundamentally the core role which SMEs play in European citizen's everyday life. To support the survival and quick recovery of SMEs across Europe, SMEunited presents proposals on the emergency actions, exit and recovery strategies.


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Ahead of the European Council and in view of the European Commission working on the recovery plan, SMEunited President Maggiar proposes concrete actions for a smooth exit plan and an ambitious recovery strategy.

Concerning the emergency measures, he emphasises that "liquidity is key for SMEs. The measures announced at European level need to be put in place as fast as possible at national, regional and local level." Additionally, President Maggiar reiterates his call on public authorities to pay their invoices in due time.

For the exit strategy SMEunited requests a tailor-made and gradual lifting of containment measures, which respect local / regional specificities. Moreover, Alban Maggiar stresses the need for "a coordinated approach among Member States to avoid spill-over effects". He also insists "the time with obligatory closure and reduction of activities needs to be kept as short as possible to allow for a quick recovery of economy." To ensure healthy and safe restart, it is crucial to provide information and guidance on health and safety measures to allow a swift return to work.

Finally, SMEunited puts forward proposals on how to support SMEs in restarting their business or building a second chance. Taking on the twin transition is a prerequisite for further development of activities. For this, President Maggiar calls on the Commission "to reconsider the SME Strategy in the light of the completely new context we are living and trying to work in. In parallel, relevant resources should be made available for the recovery in a new Multiannual Financial Framework."

The whole list of measures proposed can be found here: Exit and Recovery Strategy

SMEunited, formally known as UEAPME, is the association of crafts and SMEs in Europe with around 70 member organisations from over 30 European countries. SMEunited is a recognised employers' organisation and European Social Partner and acts on behalf of crafts and SMEs in the European Social Dialogue and in discussions with the EU institutions.

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