Coordination of activities in favour of SMEs and the craft sector

Adopting the report by Mr Riccardo GAROSCI (UPE, I), the European Parliament broadly approved the efforts made by the Commission to increase coordination amongst the various Community initiatives launched for the benefit of SMEs. Parliament stressed the need for current and future legislation to be simplified and the need for tax benefits to be granted to labour-intensive SMEs, particularly in the services sector. It hoped that the banking and credit sectors would grant facilities to all SMEs, particularly by means of a code of banking practice in respect of SMEs. Parliament called on the Commission to boost the projects aimed at facilitating participation by SMEs in the EC environmental audit scheme and urged that SMEs should be directly involved in decisions, in particular through involvement on the part of the associations which represent them.