The EU’s “Eurovignette Directive” sets out a list of costs that can be charged for heavy goods vehicles, such as for the cost of infrastructure, air and noise pollution.  Currently there are no such rules for private cars.  However basic Treaty provisions prohibit any discrimination on the grounds of nationality.

Over the years, road charging schemes for private cars have given rise to numerous complaints to the Commission, and some, have fallen outside of EU rules.  For example In 1996, Austria had to modify its plans for a vignette system after the Commission said that offering only a yearly pass would be unfair to foreign motorists.  Infringement proceedings were launched against Slovenia in 2008 because it was only offering half-year vignettes.  As a result, the authorities included weekly passes. 

The Commission’s new guidelines state what constitutes a non-discriminatory charging scheme.  In particular, the Commission expresses a clear preference for distance-based toll systems as being inherently fairer and more effective in sending price signals than a time based “vignette sticker” system.  Nonetheless if a time based “vignette system” is used, then certain conditions must be met.

There must be a minimum of weekly, monthly and yearly “vignettes” available to residents and non-residents.  The Commission has also defined an acceptable “average daily price ratio” for non-residents compared to residents.  This takes into account what the non-resident pays using the shortest term vignette (for example weekly vignette) compared to a resident using the longest one (for example the annual vignette).

Based on schemes currently in place, the average daily price a non-resident pays can vary from 2.5 to up to 8.2 times the price a resident pays.  This would be considered the upper acceptable limit.

Clear information on user charges should also be easily available to non-residents.  They should be provided with a range of options to pay (easily accessible pay stations at the border as well as by phone and websites).  Enforcement must not only focus on border areas.

It is for each Member State to decide if they want to introduce road charges for which vehicles, if at all, and how they will collect the charge.  To date, some have chosen to use a distance-based road toll system.  Seven including Austria, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia use a time-based “vignette” charging scheme for private cars.  The Netherlands and Denmark have discussed introducing road charging systems, including for private cars.

Please contact Enterprise Europe Network Yorkshire if you would like more information on 0800 052 8156.

Barriers - regulatory, financial, standardization, technical and social - hamper the successful delivery of innovations to market.  A 1% increase of the rate of growth of the water industry in Europe has been estimated to create up to 20,000 new jobs.

If endorsed, the European Partnership on Water (EIP) will work with key stakeholders to develop a Strategic Implementation Plan, setting out priority areas for action in the areas of urban, rural and industrial water management , as well as addressing cross-cutting themes. .  It wil seek to align existing European, national and regional activities, remove barriers to innovation and promote interaction between those facing potential water problems and those who can provide potential solutions.

The Partnership would be expected to create innovation sites to develop, test and demonstrate concrete activities, actions, prototypes and solutions to specific water challenges.  It will also disseminate breakthroughs and innovative solutions.

The proposal for the EIP on water is now being considered the Council and the European Parliament.  If approved, participants will be invited to a first meeting of a High-Level Steering Group and this group will nominate a Task Force to draft the Plan.  Adoption of the Plan is anticipated in December 2012 for it to be operational in early 2013.

Please contact Enterprise Europe Network Yorkshire on 0800 052 8156 for more information.

Using this one list of authorised claims and conditions of use, enforcement authorities will be able verify if a claim is misleading or not.  The list is based on sound scientific advice and hopes to help remove misleading health claims from the market before the end of the year. 

Food manufacturers will have a period of 6 months to adapt their practices to the new requirements.  As from the beginning of December 2012 all claims that are not authorised and not on hold/under consideration will be prohibited.

Accoding to the European Commission, consumers are looking for added value when purchasing food.  They attach great importance to health and are becoming increasingly aware of its relationship with their diet and the food they eat.  Health claims can therefore be an important source of information, and have become a vital marketing tool used by food businesses to attract consumer attention and influence choice.  Concern that health claims could be less than informative or be misleading, by accident or by design, has given voice to calls for clear rules on authorisation and tighter controls.

The approved list represents the outcome of the work undertaken by the Commission and European Food Safety Authority on health claims submitted by Member States on behalf of their food industry and consumers.

The health claims now included on the permitted list represent some 500 entries from the consolidated list Member States have submitted.  A further 1600 entries from the consolidated list could not be authorised.  The remainder of the claims (about 2200, mainly so-called "botanical substances") are still awaiting completion of the authorisation process.

Claims for which the authorisation process is complete will be listed in the Union Register of nutrition and health claims made on foods as required by legislation.  The Union Register is an interactive database and can be accessed here.

This should be good news for those using maps, email and social networks when travelling.  A family taking an annual holiday in another EU country is also estimated to save at least €200 (about £161) in future.

From summer 2012, data downloads will get much cheaper under the same alert system which the EU has use to place price caps on calling and texting since 2007.  Downloading data previously cost more than €4 (c. £3.22) per Megabyte from many operators in July 2009.  Now those prices will be cut around six times.  By 2014, as prices are cut further, the maximum cost of downloading data will be just 20 cents (approximately 16 pence) per Megabyte, plus VAT, a saving of 90% on many current rates.

Operators are free to offer cheaper rates but the price caps are a maximum level to act as a safeguard, although competition is expected to drive them lower.

To help avoid “bill shock”, from 1st July people travelling outside the EU will get a warning text message, email or pop-up window when they are nearing €50  (c. £40) of data downloads, or their pre-agreed level.  Consumers will have to confirm they are happy to go over this level in order to continue their data roaming.

From 1 July 2014, customers will have the option to shop around for a separate mobile roaming provider –either through a contract or by choosing a provider at their destination, like they would choose a Wi-Fi network. 

The so-called "Roaming Regulation" is said to be part of a much bigger technology development.  If data were cheaper, many people could use more smart phones abroad for wider services such as healthcare, purchasing, banking, finding their way or socialising.

The European Commission aims to build a complete digital Single Market with consistent rules so Europeans can easily enjoy great content on all their devices.  Besides affordable internet, it is also taking action in a number of other areas it considers important.  These include data protection, cloud computing, e-Identification, number portability, the right to 12 month mobile contracts and lowering mobile termination rates.

For more information see cheaper roaming or Digital Agenda for Europe.

Currently there are no VAT rules on how transactions involving vouchers should be dealt with.  In absence of common rules, Member States have developed their own practices.  These are not coordinated properly and have caused problems for businesses and VAT collection.

When a voucher is issued in one Member State for example, and used in another, it is not always clear at what point the transactions linked to the voucher should be taxed.  Instead of being able to really benefit  from the Single Market, companies have faced problems of double taxation and difficulties in expanding their business across borders.  The new rules seek to address this situation.

Firstly, the Commission proposes to harmonise the definition of vouchers for VAT purposes and the point of taxation for voucher transactions. The time of taxation will be determined by the nature of the voucher, thereby clarifying if the tax should be charged when a voucher is sold or when it is redeemed for goods and services.

Secondly, the new rules would draw a clear line between vouchers and other means of payment.  The growing number of mobile devices makes it necessary to distinguish between prepared telecom credits (which are vouchers) and mobile payment services (which are taxed differently).  Changes in payment technology, notably the increasing use of mobile payments, require that any room for confusion is removed.

Finally, the draft Directive provides for common rules for the distribution of vouchers in a chain of intermediaries, especially where this takes place across two or more Member States.  A phone card, for example, changes hands several times in a distribution chain before it reaches the consumer and the businesses concerned need certainty about their tax obligations.

If the proposal is adopted, the new rules will enter into force on 1 January 2015.  Further information, including an impact assessment for the proposed legislation, can be found at VAT Legislation proposed.

The call is targeted particularly at SMEs that have developed an innovative green product, process or service which is struggling to find its place in the market.  The call offers co-funding to cover up to 50% of the project cost, and is likely to support around 50 new projects this year.  The call has five main priority areas:

• Materials recycling
• Water
• Sustainable building products
• Green business
• The food and drink sector

Some 50 projects are now set to launch from last year’s call, and over 140 projects are already underway.  Examples of current schemes include converting old discarded TVs into tiles, new waste sorting mechanisms, innovative eco-packaging for milk and a new technique for recycling textiles.

Eco-Innovation is funded via the Competitiveness and Innovation Programme (CIP).  Its aim is to support technologically-proven products which help make better use of Europe’s natural resources.  The current call for applications is open until 6 September 2012.

For more information see CIP Eco-Innovation.

The new regulation replaces existing rules to better coordinate the use of a computerised Excise Movement and Control System (EMCS) which was introduced in 2010.  The EMCS monitors the movement of excise goods for which duties still have to be paid.  Automated procedures will replace manual procedures wherever this information is electronically available within the EMCS.  This, for example, includes information on road controls or interruptions in the movement of goods.

Rights and obligations of Member States have also been clarified in the new rules in terms of the requests they can submit to each other, information they must provide, deadlines to answer requests, and the use of standardised forms for these exchanges.  The ultimate objective is to ensure that the process for Member States to collect and retrieve excise duties is as smooth and efficient as possible.  Direct contacts between anti-fraud agencies are also expected to improve administrative cooperation.

More information see Excise duty regulation.

The fund has a pan-European remit but will invest at least £40m in UK SMEs. 

For more information on this fund go here. 

General information on Capital Funds can be found here. 

The new agreement, which is the result of an autonomous initiative on the part of the workers and employers, builds on existing national best practices that are effective in reducing occupational health risks.

László Andor, EU Commissioner for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion, welcomed the signing of the new agreement underlining that hairdressers today experience a much higher-than-average rate of occupational skin disease and musculoskeletal disorders.

The agreement aims to help to reduce these risks for all workers in the hairdressing sector in the EU.  Hairdressing is the most high risk profession for occupational skin diseases.  In some countries up to 70% of hairdressers suffer from work-related skin damage such as dermatitis at some point during their career, which is least 10 times more than the average for workers of all sectors. 

Almost 40% of hairdressers report musculoskeletal complaints, five times more than the rate for workers of all sectors. It is hoped that when implemented, this agreement by the European social partners will help to dramatically improve this situation.
 

The signatory parties Coiffure EU and UNI Europa Hair & Beauty are now in the process of asking the Commission for their agreement to be made legally binding in the EU. Before presenting a legislative proposal to the Council of Ministers, the Commission will carry out an assessment of the representative status of the signatory parties, their mandate and the legality of each clause of the agreement in relation to existing Union law.

Reducing their environmental impact is a challenge to SMEs all over Europe. The pressure upon them for products and processes with a lower environmental impact will increase from the market place as well as environmental legislation in the coming years.

In 2007, the EC launched the Environmental Compliance Assistance Programme (ECAP) to support SMEs with regards to their compliance with a wide set of environmental legislation. ECAP also actively promotes the uptake of EMAS as a cost-effective way to improve SMEs environmental performance whilst simultaneously increasing their profitability. At that time, only 6% of SMEs had any type of Environmental Management System (EMS) in place.

The main objective of the new scheme, Go4EMAS, is to ensure that pro-active services in the field of the
Eco-Management and Audit Scheme (EMAS) are delivered to European SMEs. Three key sectors with a high environmental benefit potential have been selected in the partner regions:

• metal working
• surface treatment
• manufacturing of electric
• electronic components.

A tailored methodology to support EMAS implementation on a step-by-step basis will be developed and implemented. The project's sustainability will be assured by the direct participation of local stakeholders and the creation of so-called "EMAS clubs" with the participation of SMEs and environmental service providers. The clubs will be created by making use of the Enterprise Europe Network.

Project duration: 11/2011 -10/2013
Countries: Bulgaria, Germany, Italy, Poland, Spain and United Kingdom

For further information contact Andy Taylor on Tel: 0800 052 8156

The new deadline would allow for more time to discuss in depth a 2011 proposal by the European Commission for a new Directive on electromagnetic fields which whould repeal Directive 2004/40.

The original Directive was adopted together with other measures intended to protect workers from the health effects of noise, vibration and optical radiation.  However, soon after its adoption in 2004, the medical community working with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) claimed that its activities would be hampered by the strict exposure limit values laid down.

Due to these difficulties in its application and to allow time for the Directive to be amended in the light of new scientific information, the Parliament and Council initially decided to delay its transposition until 30 April 2012. Now this has been extended by a furher 18 months.

The report covers the period between 1^st September 2011 and 29^th February 2012, showing that so far Croatia’s preparations for membership are on track.  Nevertheless, the Commission has identified a limited number of issues requiring further efforts.

The Commission will continue monitoring Croatia’s accession preparations with all available means, including regular meetings under the Stabilisation Association Agreement.  The Commission is expected to present the next, more comprehensive Monitoring Report to the European Parliament and the Council in autumn 2012.

For more details, please contact Enterprise Europe Network Yorkshire on 0800 052 8156 or click here to contact us via our website.

The table below outlines which calls have already opened and those which are still to come.  What may be less well known is the level of support available to you for finding and building consortia to bid for these calls, and others.

To explore how we can help you get involved or even just to explain the many and confusing acronyms, please contact Leo Donato.

Horizon 2020 will take over from FP7 from 1st January 2014, promising both an increased budget, structural changes and simplifications to the process. As many have commented, the devil will be in the detail, but watch this space for a range of communications and events exploring opportunities for regional companies in both FP7 and Horizon2020 over the coming months.

Budgets (in euro, where available) are in square brackets. All calls will be one-stage submissions unless specified.

Where available, further documents and information can be downloaded from the links

GreenLight encourages partners to install energy-efficient lighting technologies and systems, whilst GreenBuilding promotes improved energy efficiency through several measures such as thermal insulation, efficient heating and cooling, intelligent control systems, photovoltaic (solar) panels etc.  Average energy savings from all prize winners in both categories was 68,5%.

Under the GreenBuilding programme, in the refurbishment category, one of the winners is the German Derag Hotels group, which obtained an 88% reduction in energy consumption with a saving of 304 MWh per year. In the category of new buildings, the offices of Fabege AB (Sweden) achieved an effective saving of 64% (3 411 MWh per year).

Under the GreenLight programme, the winners include a data centre of Migration Solutions (UK), which reduced its energy consumption by 95% (732 MWh per year). 

Buildings are responsible for 40% of energy consumption and 36% of EU CO2 emissions.  Energy performance of buildings is key to achieving the EU climate and energy objectives, namely the reduction of  20% of greenhouse gases emissions and a 20% energy savings by 2020.  In addition, the Directive on energy performance of buildings establishes that by the end of 2020, EU Member States must ensure that all new buildings are "nearly-zero energy" buildings, with a very high energy performance.

The GreenBuilding programme partners contribute to this target by providing valuable examples of the innovative technologies that can be applied. To view all the winners, please see here.
 

At the same time, traineeships can help young people make a smooth transition from education and training to a first good job.  The Commission also believes that placements can bring benefits to companies, enabling them to identify potentially excellent future employees who could be key to future productivity and competitiveness. 

From 2012 to 2013, the Commission will provide funding support for a total of 280 000 placements through its Leonardo da Vinci and Erasmus schemes for vocational and higher education students.  It has undertaken to increase by 30% the number of Leonardo da Vinci and Erasmus work placements.  In 2012, at least 130 000 young people will receive support for a traineeship in a workplace aboard, and this figure should increase to 150 000 next year.  Studies show that trainees with foreign language skills can help enterprises to enter new markets.  At the same time, businesses with workforces that lack language and communication skills can end up counting the cost of missed opportunities.

The ‘We Mean Business’ campaign aims to demonstrate the benefits of international placements to businesses.  It has a dedicated website which contains information and links on how to organise or find a European placement.  To find out more visit We Mean Business. 

The report shows that some States have recycling rates of up to 70% and bury virtually nothing, whilst others still landfill more than three-quarters of their waste.  According to the report, a mix of landfilling and incineration taxes and bans, producer responsibility schemes and pay-as-you-throw prove to be the most effective tools in shifting waste streams to more sustainable paths and improving waste management:

Landfill and incineration taxes and / or bans – landfilling and incineration rates have decreased in countries where bans or taxes have driven up costs for landfilling and incineration.

Pay-as-you-throw schemes have proved very efficient in preventing waste generation and encouraging citizens to participate in separate waste collection.

Producer responsibility schemes have allowed several Member States to gather and redistribute the funds necessary to improve separate collection and recycling.  But cost-efficiency and transparency vary greatly between Member States and between waste streams, so these schemes need careful planning and monitoring.

There are significant differences in waste management between Member States.  According to another report published by Eurostat on 27 March 2012, the most advanced six Member States – Belgium, Denmark, Germany, Austria, Sweden and the Netherlands – landfill less than 3% of their municipal waste.  At the other extreme, 9 Member States are still landfilling more than 75% of their municipal waste.  If the EU is to meet the objectives set out in its Resource Efficiency Roadmap, then replicating successful waste reduction instruments in all Member States will be necessary.  The possibility of making their use legally binding in some cases will be assessed in a 2014 review of EU waste targets.  The Commission is also including sound waste management in conditions for receiving certain European funds, and is also encouraging Member States to implement existing waste legislation more effectively.

For more detailed results see Report on municipal waste management.

Local contribution to global climate change
Local transport
Green urban areas incorporating sustainable land use
Nature and biodiversity
Quality of local ambient air
Noise pollution
Waste production and management
Water consumption
Waste water treatment
Eco innovation and sustainable employment
Environmental management of the local authority
Energy performance.

Four cities have been awarded the title of European Green Capital since its inception in 2010. Stockholm won the inaugural title, followed by Hamburg in 2011, the current holder Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain, and Nantes, who will hold the title in 2013.

Bristol, Copenhagen and Frankfurt will present their vision, action plans, communication strategy and their potential to act as a role model for other cities to the jury on 8 June 2012 in Brussels.  The jury will deliver its verdict at an award ceremony in Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain on 29 June.

It is estimated that the Commission's proposal for improving the registration process of motor vehicles coming from another EU country could bring total savings of at least € 1.5 billion (or approximately £1.2 billion) per year for businesses, citizens and registration authorities.  It introduces the principle that a car should be registered in the EU country where its owner lives, and that all other Member States may not ask him/her to register the car with them, even if the car owner spends a longer period there.

When the proposal is adopted by the European Parliament and the Council, citizens who work in another EU country using a car registered by their employer will not need to re-register it.  Car –rental companies will be able to transfer cars to another EU country during the holiday periods without re-registration.  For companies, the same principle applies: cars, buses, vans and trucks should be registered in the EU country where the main office is established.  It is hoped that this will allow administrative formalities for the re-registration within the EU of cars, vans, buses and trucks to be greatly simplified. 

When moving residence permanently from one EU country to another, citizens will also have 6 months to re-register their car.  It will not be necessary to re-register a car in another EU country when citizens spend part of the year there in a holiday residence.

Many controls are expected to be abolished altogether.  Authorities will need to obtain any technical data they need about a car directly from their colleagues in the country where it is registered.  Those purchasing a second-hand car from another EU country will no longer have to face additional technical controls and administrative procedures.  Registration authorities will be expected to increasingly cooperate with each other, making it easier to track stolen cars.  

The proposal is now being discussed by the European Parliament and Council.  Once approved, Member States will be given one year to prepare for the new procedures, such as introducing software for data exchange.

The European Commission is expected to take an initiative later in 2012 to clarify the EU rules that Member States must respect when car registration and circulation taxes are applied.  It will make recommendations on avoiding double taxation of cars when citizens move from one Member State to another and on removing obstacles for cross-border car rentals.

For more information click here.

It reportedly considers worker mobility as one of the key factors in increasing growth and employment in Europe.  Tax obstacles remain one of the key deterrents to citizens looking for work in another Member State.  The Commission is already working on removing barriers for EU workers, for example, in its proposal to tackle double taxation or to boost protection for posted workers.

Throughout 2012 the Commission will also carry out a thorough assessment of national direct taxes to determine whether they create unfair disadvantages for workers that live in one Member State and work in another.  Where discrimination or breaches of the EU’s fundamental freedoms are found, the Commission will flag them to the national authorities concerned and insist that the necessary amendments are made.  Should the problems persist, the Commission will take infringement procedures (legal proceedings) against the Member States in question.

In this latest initiative, the Commission is not only scrutinising whether citizens who earn most of their income in one Member State are taxed more heavily than the citizens of that Member State.  It is also looking at whether Member States differentiate between their own citizens and citizens from other EU countries who work occasionally in their territory, in particular with regard to the right to deduct expenses and the application of different tax rates.  The situation for both employed and dependent workers as well as self-employed and pensioners will be taken into account.

Click here for more information.

The Regulation aims to reduce the amount of phosphates found in waste water and to improve water quality.  It does not affect detergents used by professionals as technically and economically feasible alternatives are not yet available throughout the EU. 

Phosphates are primarily used in detergents to ensure efficient cleaning in hard water.  When excessively discharged into water, they cause algae to grow at the expense of other aquatic life.  They also have to be removed through costly chemical or biological processes at waste treatment plants when discharged into waste water.  Not all treatment plants in the EU are equipped with the necessary technology to carry this out.

The Regulation sets a new phosphorous content limit in consumer laundry detergents at 0.5 grams per standard washing dose in hard water by 30 June 2013.  The forthcoming months interim will allow companies not having already developed phosphate-free laundry detergents to reformulate in a normal product life cycle. For consumer automatic dishwasher detergents, more research is still needed to develop adequate alternatives to phosphates, without reducing their efficiency.  Therefore, the content limit is set at 0.3 grams per standard dose and will only be applicable by 1 January 2017. 

A review is expected to take place by 31 December 2014 to check if compliance with limits set out in the Regulation is feasible for EU manufacturers of such dishwasher detergents.  The impacts of alternatives to phosphates on water treatment are also expected to be examined.  This will allow the Commission to verify whether the deadline of 1 January 2017 can be met. 

Currently, some Member States already have national restrictions in place with divergent limit values of phosphorous substances.  Others rely on voluntary action of detergent manufacturers.  In some regions, the Commission believes that measures taken by individual countries are not sufficient to maintain water quality at acceptable levels.  This is the case of the Danube River and Baltic Sea.

Please contact Enterprise Europe Network Yorkshire if you would like further information or have any questions.
 

These include new European Commission projects to support clusters of SMEs (small and medium-sized companies) in the sectors of clean technologies, renewable energy, bio-technology, and sports goods so they can take full advantage of the strong growth in these sectors in Asia, Latin America, North America and Russia. The projects aim to improve the performance of clusters, especially SMEs, to collaborate with research institutions, suppliers, customers and competitors located in the same geographical area.  They involve 20 organisations in Greece, Ireland, Hungary and Turkey as well as partners from Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Croatia, Iceland, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia and Spain.

Another Commission initiative, the EU's China Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) SME Helpdesk,  has broadened its range of interactive services and each year enables thousands of SMEs from Europe to secure and defend their intellectual property in this key market.  The China IPR SME Helpdesk aims to assist EU businesses to enter the Chinese market securely, reap additional profits and win new customers.  Services are available free of charge and include confidential advice and interactive training on how to register IPR, prevent counterfeits and copying, and find reliable suppliers.

The Commission also supports the Enterprise Europe Network, which is made up of more than 600 partners and aims to help SMEs go abroad.  During 2011, it opened contact points in Japan and doubled its presence in the Chinese market.  In the Mediterranean there are partners in Egypt, Morrocco and Tunisia.  Other new countries that have joined the Network in 2012 include Ukraine, Moldova and Albania.

The Network can help SMEs develop their business in new markets, source or licence new technologies and provide information on access to EU finance and funding.  It also promotes entrepreneurship in the EU through events organised to inform, assist and support companies on current or developing market trends and compliance issues. 

Finally, the Commission is organising European SME Week 2012, which it to take place from 15-20 October .  A range of events will be organised to help SMEs find out about the support available to them.   The Enterprise Europe Network Yorkshire is organising an event during this week on Health and Safety for SMEs. 

Anyone can organise an event under the umbrella of the European SME Week; existing and budding entrepreneurs, young people, business organisations, business support providers, public authorities, educational institutions. It is now possible for organisers to register their event on a central portal designated for this. 

Please contact us on 0800 052 8156 if you would like more information.

According to the survey, 37% of EU SMEs have at least one full or part-time ‘green employee’.  Green jobs are largely created in SMEs as opposed to large firms, and these jobs are estimated to grow at a rate of 35% in the next two years in these firms.  The survey also reveals other sources of untapped potential which could be used by SMEs.  For example, less than a quarter of SMEs take advantage of the single market for green products or services.  Bureaucracy is considered as one of the obstacles:  20% of SMEs say that it would be easier to do green investments if cross-border administrative and legal procedures were not so complex.

SMEs in green industries are also maturing.  Three in five (61%) SMEs selling green products or services have been active in green markets for more than three years compared to 52% in the US.  Food and beverages and electronic and mechanical machinery and equipment are the most commonly sold green products and services by SMEs in the EU.

Green products and services are defined as those with a predominant function of reducing environmental risk and minimising pollution and resources.  For this survey, green jobs are either those related to the production of goods or to the provision of services that benefit the environment or optimise natural resources, or jobs whose characteristics involve use of practices and processes which are either more environmentally friendly or use few natural resources.

Key areas in the survey cover the following issues:

Strong at home but weak abroad
Green markets for SMEs in the EU remain mainly domestic – 87% involved in green business or the green economy operate in their national markets.

Customer demand plays a major role
The main reason for SMEs in the EU to sell green products or services is demand from customers (48%), followed by companies’ core values and image.

Reducing energy and resources consumption
93% of EU SMEs take action to be more resource efficient.  64% of SMEs save energy, 61% recycle and 62% minimise waste.

Policy measures can help unleash the ‘green growth giant’
Financial incentives are considered by SMEs as the best means to help them become greener in the way they operate and the products and services they offer.

Administrative simplification would boost green products
Technical advice and administrative simplification are also considered to be very effective in helping SMEs to be greener.  In the next two years, four SMEs in five plan to implement resource efficiency actions but one in five say that it would be easier if administrative and legal procedures were not so complex or the costs of taking action were lower.

Green public procurement still a challenge
Green public procurement as a driver for a more sustainable economy is still a challenge for SMEs.  According to the available data, only 11% of SMEs in the EU have bid for a public procurement tender that included environmental requirements compared with 16% of larger companies.

To view the full report see ‘SMEs, resource efficiency and green markets’

The new rules, if the UK chooses to take up the option, would allow so-called “micro-entities” to prepare abridged balance sheets and abridged profit and loss accounts, with limited disclosure notes.  For the purposes of the Directive, micro-entities are defined as being companies which do not exceed two out of the following three thresholds:

• a balance sheet total of €350,000 (c. £292,700)
• net turnover of €700,000 (£604,520)
• an average of 10 employees during the financial year

It will be up to the UK Government to decide whether or not it wishes to implement the Directive and it is likely to go out to consultation on this later this year.  Further information about the Directive and its possible implementation in the UK is available on the website of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (see micro-entities)
 

The proposal also aims to ensure that all companies (both European and non-European) are on an equal footing when it comes to competing for business in the EU’s lucrative public procurement market.

Worldwide, only a quarter of the world’s procurement market is open for international competition.  The restrictions applied by the EU’s trading partners affect sectors where the EU is highly competitive such as construction, public transport, medical devices, power generation and pharmaceuticals. 

The new initiative proposed by the Commission should increase the incentives for the EU’s trading partners to open up their public procurement markets to EU foreign bidders, and ensure that EU companies can compete in the internal market with foreign companies on an equal basis.  The initiative also aims to increase business opportunities for EU companies, boost the potential for small and medium-sized enterprises to operate in a globalised economy, and increase employment and innovation in the EU.

Key aspects of the Commissions proposal for a Regulation include:

• The Commission may approve that EU contracting authorities, for contracts above €5 million, exclude tenders comprising a significant part of foreign goods and services where these contracts are not covered by existing international agreements
• In the event of repeated and serious discrimination against European suppliers in non-EU countries, the Commission will have at its disposal a mechanism allowing it to restrict access to the EU market, if the country outside the EU does not engage in negotiations to address market access imbalances.  Any restrictive measures will be targeted, for example, by excluding tenders originating in a non-EU country or imposing a price penalty
• Increased transparency on abnormally low offers in order to combat unfair competition by non-EU suppliers on the European market.

For further details see External Public Procurement Initiative - FAQs

The proposal is for an enforcement Directive.  It has been put forward to improve the way existing rules on posted workers are applied in practice, as findings suggest that minimum employment and working conditions are often not respected for the one million or so posted workers in the EU.  It is hoped that the adoption of the proposal will address the specific issues of abuse where workers do not enjoy their full rights in terms of, for example, pay or holidays - especially in the construction sector.

As part of the legislative package, the Commission has also put forward a new regulation that takes on board existing case law.  This is especially relevant in the context of cross-border services provision like the posting of workers.  The overall aim of both proposals is to boost quality jobs and increase competitiveness in the EU by updating and improving the way the single market works, while safeguarding workers’ rights. 

In particular, the Directive would:

- set more ambitious standards to inform workers and companies about their rights and obligations;

- establish clear rules for cooperation between national authorities in charge of posting;

- provide elements to improve the implementation and monitoring of the notion of posting, to avoid the multiplication of "letter-box" companies that use posting as a way to circumvent employment rules;

- define the supervisory scope and responsibilities of relevant national authorities;

- improve the enforcement of workers’ rights, including the introduction of joint and several liability for the construction sector for the wages of posted workers as well as the handling of complaints.

For more information see: the posting of workers or contact us on 0800 052 8156 with your questions.

In a dedicated conference in Stuttgart, the European Commission has presented a demonstration of what the “Auto-gration”, a smart use of information technology, can do to facilitate small suppliers’ integration in the automotive supply chain.
 
Today, an SME that wishes to collaborate with larger manufactures will often be forced to maintain several information systems in parallel, an effort that needlessly raises costs and reduces logistical flexibility.  The Auto-gration offers a simplified, easy to use and low-cost environment: a small supplier with no previous ICT equipment can get connected and digitally operational with all its different business partners in just two days, making important administrative savings and efficiency gains.  Initiated and financed by the European Commission, Auto-gration is now passing into the hands of the automotive industry that takes the lead in the use of this smart technology.

A Memorandum of Understanding was signed among leading associations and ICT vendors and automotive stakeholders, to promote further the results and stimulate real market roll-out.  The automotive sector is one of the most important sectors of the European economy and very SME-intensive.

This project is part of the Commission’s eBSN (E-business Support Network for SMEs) policy initiative to “promote the smart use of information technology and the integration of SMEs in global industrial value chains”

The National Loan Guarantee Scheme has been found to be in line with the EU’s crisis State Aid rules for banks, because it makes sure that the reduced funding costs from which banks will benefit are passed on to SMEs.   The Scheme should help reduce borrowing costs for small firms by providing a State guarantee for the loan.  The Commission found that this should not unduly distort competition.  The UK Government is proposing to make available up to £20bn in guarantees to banks, so that they can issue unsecured debt.  The funding is to be directed to new loans to SMEs at reduced rates.

The Commission has also approved a second measure, the Business Finance Partnership.  This aims to increase the credit supply to SMEs through non-bank lending.  The investments made through the scheme will be made on equal terms with that of private lenders and the management of the fund will be chosen through an open tender. The Commission therefore found that it also does not involve State Aid within the meaning of the EU rules.  The scheme is to be provided with up to £1bn in funds and it is hoped that it will stimulate the further development of non-bank lending channels in the UK.

For further information about the schemes and the EU decision to approve them, please contact the Enterprise Europe Network Yorkshire team on 0800 052 8156 or e-mail info@ee-yorkshire.com
 

One of the categories for entry will be SME (Small and Medium Sized Enterprise) funding for those entrepreneurs that want to extend their business and enter new markets.  Eligible entries can be national organisations, towns, cities, regions and communities as well as public-private partnerships between public authorities and entrepreneurs, educational programmes and business organisations.

In the current economic context, SMEs are acknowledged to contribute to growth and their job creation potential is impressive.  85% of all new jobs in the EU are provided by SMEs.  Public authorities support SMEs with a large number of initiatives.  The most impactful measure will be chosen by an expert jury and receive its award during the 2012 SME Assembly taking place in November, Cyprus.

There are five different award categories:

• Promoting the entrepreneurial spirit
• Investing in skills
• Improving the business environment
• Supporting the internationalisation of businesses
• Responsible and inclusive entrepreneurship.

The competition comprises of two stages; applicants first have to compete at national level.  Each country can then select two entries to be nominated to the European competition by July 16, 2012.  Click here for full details on the award categories.

The objectives of the European Commission’s annual European Enterprise Promotion Awards are to:

• Identify and recognise outstanding initiatives that promote enterprise and
  entrepreneurship;
• Showcase and share examples of best entrepreneurship policies and practices;
• Create a greater awareness of the role entrepreneurs play in society;
• Encourage and inspire potential entrepreneurs.

Please contact Enterprise Europe Network Yorkshire to find out how to apply.
 

The Enterprise Europe Network (EEN) team based at Bradford City Council helped 30 local companies win 220 contracts through the European Union’s Tenders Electronic Daily (TED).

The team - led by Jenny Lawson - specialises in finding the right kind of opportunities in the ‘Official Journal of the European Union’ and other sources and delivering daily tailored search results to local companies.
 
A 2011 survey found that all companies using the service received useful market intelligence on public procurement, over half of the companies were able to safeguard jobs thanks to contract wins and 76% of respondents were able to get on to approved supplier lists for future work.

Susanne Bell a director of Sheffield based marketing and branding company, Ledgard Jepson. She said:

“We wouldn’t be without this service. It’s simply the best service of its kind out there.

“Thanks to their help, we have been working on public sector contracts won through the European Union’s procurement journal for over 13 years and are now in our 8th year of a key national account.

“While any business can get access to it, it’s such a help to have trained team sifting through new opportunities on our behalf. I just wouldn’t be able to cope with the workload without their help.”

JBA Consulting is an environmental, engineering and risk company based in Skipton. The company’s business development team includes Yvonne Edmondson. She added:

“The service provides a really valuable resource to us and through EEN we have won around £1.8 million of new business.

“As well as providing the daily tenders alerts service, if ever we need help with any research or tender analysis questions, the team is very happy and willing to provide any help they can.”

 Jenny Lawson is manager of the tenders alerts service at Bradford City Council. She added:

“The success of the service is down to the team really getting to know our clients’ businesses and the kinds of work they might be interested in.

“However, access to UK and European wide tender opportunities is only one element of what the European Commission is doing for business at a local level.

“Enterprise Europe Network provides help for small businesses looking for agents, distributors or technology partners overseas as well as offering access to the European Commission’s €50bn Framework Programme for research and development.”

Getting a foothold in new markets can be a challenge. Enterprise Europe Network can help. Your local gateway to the European marketplace, it is Europe’s largest network for small companies with a presence in 50 countries and 280 cities.

Funded by the European Commission, advisors work with businesses, universities and research bodies to help them make the most of opportunities overseas.
Enterprise Europe Network helps organisations interested in..

Research opportunities
Business & market opportunities
News alerts & EU information
Tenders Information Service

** The Enterprise Europe Network in Yorkshire brings together three local organizations including RTC North, Targeting Innovation and Bradford Metropolitan District Council which are dedicated to helping your business get the information and advice you need, to compete effectively here in the UK and the rest of Europe.

For more information visit www.ee-yorkshire.com .

ENDS

Media contacts: Jamie Ollivere at RTC North on 01915164400 or Mob 07950566182
Notes to editor:

1. Enterprise Europe Network: The Enterprise Europe Network is made up of close to 600 partner organisations in 50 countries, promoting competitiveness and innovation at the local level in Europe and beyond. Whether you need information on EU legislation, help with technology transfer or finding a business partner, want to benefit from innovation networks in your region or need information on funding opportunities, this is the place to start. Enterprise Europe Network Yorkshire brings together three local organizations , RTC North, Targeting Innovation and Bradford Metropolitan District Council which are dedicated to helping your business get the information and advice you need, to compete effectively here in the UK and the rest of Europe. Launched in January 2008, the consortium includes partners with many years of experience in delivering high quality services to local firms, We also work closely with UK Trade & Investment and a range of other business support organisations in the region, to make sure that you can access all the help and advice you need..
2. Targeting Innovation Ltd: Targeting Innovation Ltd (TIL) is a renowned delivery provider of specialist support services to technology or innovation led companies and research organisations. Throughout the wide range of services and products we provide, our primary objective is to help businesses succeed through innovation.  TIL has extensive experience in project management, working closely with the public  sector to develop innovation strategies and managing programmes in support of these strategies. Targeting Innovation’s role in the consortium is project coordination, focussing on the integration of the services into high profile and high quality delivery.

3.RTC North Ltd: RTC North is recognised as one of the most successful independent technology transfer companies in Europe serving businesses, universities and the public sector in the UK and overseas.  Led since 1987 by our founder Gordon Ollivere and employing scientists, technologists, engineers and business professionals, RTC North’s aim is to help clients exploit new opportunities and improve competitiveness through the application of technology, knowledge and forward thinking. RTC North act as primary deliverer of business and innovation services.

4.Bradford Metropolitan District Council: Bradford Metropolitan District Council (BMDC) is the local authority covering the City of Bradford and surrounding district in West Yorkshire.  The City Council has, provided a pro-active European information and support service to companies for over 20 years, BMDC is the primary deliverer of information on European legislation, tendering opportunities, business cooperation and internationalisation services, as well as the manager of the contract with the European Commission.

The aim of the EIPs is to address weaknesses, bottlenecks and obstacles in the European research and innovation system that prevent or slow down good ideas being developed and brought to market.  These include under-investment, outdated regulation, lack of standards, and fragmentation of markets.  EIPs identify what needs to be done to overcome bottlenecks – from further developing technologies to getting the market frameworks right and stimulating demand – and galvanise action across public and private sectors.  They do not replace funding programmes or regulatory processes, but provide a shared platform for co-operation.

Innovation partnership to overcome Europe’s raw materials shortage

Under the proposal to set up a European Innovation Partnership on raw materials,  it is hoped that joint innovation efforts will support the exploration, extraction and processing of raw materials with a view to increasing Europe’s own production .     For example, it has been estimated that the value of unexploited European mineral resources at a depth of 500-1000 metres is about €100 billion (£83 billion).  New technologies will help to extract deeper, in more remote areas and under harsh conditions.  Action is also needed to develop substitutes for critical raw materials and to improve recycling of electric, electronic equipment and other waste.

European Innovation Partnership for agriculture

The key challenge for agriculture in future is not only to produce more, but also to do this in a sustainable manner.  The Commission believes that these challenges will not be resolved without a major push towards embracing research and innovation – and in particular bringing researchers, farmers and other players closer together so that they can accelerate the speed of technological transfer from science to farming practice, and to provide more systematic feedback about practice needs from farming to science.  This EIP aims to provide a working interface between agriculture, bio-economy, science, and others at EU, national and regional level.

European Innovation Partnership on active and healthy ageing

The number of European citizens aged 65 and over will double over the next 50 years, from 87 million in 2010 to 148 million in 2060.  The Commission believes that while this presents a specific challenge for European care and social systems, it is also an opportunity to redesign these systems in the interest of patients, healthcare systems and the innovative industry.  The latest report from the Commission provides concrete follow-up for the implementation of specific actions.  These include:  inviting stakeholder engagement; setting up a marketplace for innovative ideas; addressing regulatory and standardization issues.

Please contact Enterprise Europe Network Yorkshire on 0800 052 8156 if you would like more information or email info@ee-yorkshire.com.
 

Chairman of Leeds City Region LEP Neil McLean last week commented on the need for companies to get professional advice before approaching banks for funding, to help ensure success yet less than 20% do so*.   

Nick Butler chief executive of Connect Yorkshire,  the not-for-profit organisation which has helped over 300 high growth local companies raise £45m over the last decade, said: “We agree on the importance of being groomed for investment.  Over the last ten years we’ve seen companies become market leaders and fledging ideas turn into global brands - often these entrepreneurs and fast growing businesses may excel in their sector but need assistance in being ready and able to attract multi-million pound investors.  These workshops help business people develop skills to enable them to take their companies to the next stage of growth.”

The workshops are delivered by experienced professionals across the legal, financial, intellectual property and marketing sectors and run over a six week period, with early morning and evening events, with the first starting on 5^th March until 25^th April.  

Organisations involved in helping Connect Yorkshire deliver the programme include Garbutt and Elliott, PKF Corporate Finance, 3volution LLP, Clarion Solicitors, Knowles Warwick Accountants and Ward Haddaway Solicitors; the workshops include

• Practical Business Plans and Going Global
• Successful Management Team
• Intellectual Property Rights and Wrongs
• How to create a leading brand
• Effective Negotiation Skills
• How to do a deal – Money, Valuations and Structures

Companies wishing to join the programme can find out more from www.connectyorkshire.org or by calling 0113 384 5640.

* At the SCY Access to Finance Seminar, Neil McLean Chairman of the Leeds City Region LEP commented that "less than 20% of people that approach banks for funding seek advice before hand. A sobering statistic but one we see every day. To get the best chance for your funding request approach a professional advisor to package and present in a way that makes the banks more likely to assist."

Last April, the Commission adopted the Single Market Act.  It identified 12 key areas with the most potential for growth in the Single Market and associated new proposals to exploit untapped potential.  The Commission has now, in a governance report, presented an update of these efforts aimed at delivering growth, social progress and competitiveness.

Since the adoption of the Single Market Act in 2011, the Commission has delivered 10 of the 12 key legislative proposals promised and a further 30 complementary actions to boost growth, jobs and confidence in the Single Market.  When these proposals are finally adopted and implemented, more than 21 million businesses and 500 million consumers in Europe should benefit from a single market for venture capital, simpler accounting requirements and cheaper access to patent protection across Europe. 

It should be easier for citizens to get their qualifications recognised and seek a job in another Member State.  It should also be easier for goods to circulate and service providers to operate cross-border, thanks to new standardisation and actions aimed at removing persistent and unjustified restrictions to the provision of services.

The governance document will feed into the Commission’s report due in June on possible means to enhance the implementation of the Single Market legislation and improve its enforcement.  Before the end of 2012, the Commission will take stock of the progress made on all these fronts and present its programme for the next stage.  Its considerations will be fed by a large-scale economic study, the results of which should help to identify any areas with still unexploited growth potential and, where appropriate, pinpoint new drivers of growth.

For more information see Single Market Act and governance report.

Companies in the Forum are paying more attention to the greening of their supply chains, sustainable distribution systems and the use of renewable energies.

The Retail Forum was launched in March 2009 as a voluntary multi-stakeholder platform.  It was set up to facilitate dialogue between the European Commission, retailers and key stakeholders, to generate a better understanding of the practical measures needed to promote sustainable consumption. 

Retailers in the Forum pledge to carry out specific environmental actions to contribute to sustainable consumption and resource efficiency.  Since it was created, members’ targets and achievements have been monitored on an annual basis.  The latest monitoring report describes the 390 environmental commitments made in 3 categories (‘what we sell’, ‘how we sell’ and ‘communication’).

A number of best practice achievements have been highlighted by the report.  To promote supply chain sustainability, the Metro Group, in co-operation with the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation, introduced a supplier training programme to developing and emerging countries.  Auchan achieved savings of almost 10,000 tons in the use of packaging material, while Mercadona eliminated 80% of single-use plastic bags in 150 stores.  Tesco UK achieved the goal of sending zero waste to landfills, while Inditex reduced the average power consumption in 840 stores by 42%.  More examples of commitments made by specific retailers can be found in the report.

The report also reveals that commitments increasingly reflect the recommendations and best practices described in Retail Forum "issue papers" on sustainable timber, environmental labelling, energy efficiency and carbon footprint of stores, environmental life cycle information for products, information for consumers, packaging, transport and logistics.

For further information see the full report and the website of the Retail Forum.

The study was carried out by an international team of experts and academics.  It suggests three main types of policy measures to tackle obstacles:

• reduced regulatory fragmentation (e.g. common rules on contract duration and transparency of bills)

• more European standardisation (to allow pan-European services of assured quality to emerge in areas such as e-Health, e-Energy, e-Mobility)

• the need for more co-ordination of the activities of national telecoms regulators at EU level

The study also looks into the reasons why many European telecoms operators do not enter other European markets where retail prices remain higher than in their national markets.  A number of factors are blamed for this:

• firstly, the lack of EU standards (e.g. it is difficult for telecom operators in one Member State to get the same wholesale access product in another Member State and thus offer telecommunications services across Europe)

• secondly, differences in the implementation of the European regulatory framework (for example, consumers can now change telecom operator and retain the same number.  However, the technology to carry out such a change may be different in every Member State)

• thirdly, lack of co-ordination of national spectrum policies leading to different speeds of adopting 4G (high speed mobile broadband).

The study points to the fact that in the coming years demand for bandwidth will continue to increase.  The drivers of growth will be online services such as movies and games (which will evolve from High Definition to technologies such as 3D, e-Health or e-Learning).  These services require guaranteed quality of service.  This requires pan-European standards, since what might work in one Member State may not be possible in another.

To read the full study see ‘Steps towards a truly Internal Market for e-Communications’

The Trade and Investment Barriers Report is part of the broader enforcement strategy that aims at ensuring that the EU’s trade partners abide by their commitments and maintain open markets.  The purpose of the Report is to focus attention on efforts needed to ensure market access for European companies in important markets outside the EU.  The Report sets priorities on an annual basis concerning market access barriers to the six key trading partners.  These six countries together covered 45.7% of the EU’s trade in goods in 2011 and 44.8% of EU’s trade in commercial services in 2010.

The 2012 Report assesses the progress achieved on 21 barriers:

 - Two trade barriers were fully removed in India – export restrictions on cotton and security requirements for telecommunication equipment

  - Progress was achieved in –

• China:  indigenous innovation and export restriction on raw materials

• India:  sanitary and phytosanitary rules

• Japan:  government access to procurement and regulatory requirements for medical devices

• USA:  100% scanning of container and ‘Buy American’

 - No positive movement could be seen in the following cases:

• China:  investment catalogue and IT security

• India:  equity caps

• Japan:  financial services

• Argentina and Brazil:  restrictions in maritime transport and export restrictions on raw materials

• Argentina:  import licensing

• Brazil:  25% preference margin in government procurement

 - The Report also identifies six new priorities of barriers to trade and investment:

• China:  national security review mechanism for mergers and acquisitions involving foreign investors and export financing and subsidies

• India:  National Manufacturing Policy

• Brazil:  tax on industrial products (IPI) and import procedures for textiles and clothing

• Argentina:  restrictions in reinsurance services

The Report highlights a recent trend in emerging economies where industrial policies contain trade-restrictive elements.  These often take the form of:

• local content requirements (such an in investment policy and government procurement)

• overly burdensome standardisation and conformity assessment requirements which discriminate against foreign products

• measures having and equivalent effect to quantitative import restrictions

• export restrictions particularly applied to raw materials

For more information see Trade and Investment Barriers Report 2012
 

Negotiations are expected to start in the first half of 2012 and will cover a range of issues, including market access conditions and the harmonization of trade regulations between both partners.

The EU is Armenia's most important trading partner.  Bilateral trade in goods amounted to €960 million (approximately £801 million) in 2011.  The free trade area is expected to diversify and strengthen Armenia's export capacity and effectively open the way to access the EU market of 500 million consumers.

The free trade area will be part of the broader Association Agreement which has been negotiated with Armenia since July 2010, in the framework of the Eastern Partnership and the European Neighbourhood Policy.  The future Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area aims to associate Armenia closely with the EU both in economic and political terms, in line with the Eastern Partnership objectives.

The country already benefits from preferential access to the EU market through what is known as the EU Generalized System of Preferences (a scheme that allows exporters from developing countries to pay lower duties on some or all of what they sell to the EU) with additional incentives for sustainable development and good governance.  This means that existing import duties are already very low. 

Future trade relations are expected to expand significantly beyond the scope of current cooperation.  For more information, please see EU trade relations with South Caucasus including Armenia.  You can also click here for background information.

The original Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) Directive and its three subsequent revisions have been combined to try to create a more compact, legally clear and user-friendly version.  The new simplified version came into force on 17 February 2012.

Environmental assessment is a procedure that seeks to ensure that the environmental implications of construction projects – e.g. dams, motorways, airports, factories and energy projects – are assessed and taken into account before the relevant Member State authority makes a decision on project approval.  The common principles for the environmental assessment of individual public and private projects were initially defined in the 1985 EIA Directive and amended in 1997, 2003 and 2009.

The changes to the EIA Directive have come about as part of a review which started in 2010.  The review aims to increase the Directive’s environmental protection while reducing the administrative burden.  This ‘codification’ is part of an ongoing effort to simplify the EU’s regulatory environment.  It means that the EIA Directive and all its subsequent amendments now form one single transparent and readable piece of legislation, without any change to the original provisions. 

The EIA Directive review process will be concluded later in 2012, when the Commission will present its proposal for the revision of the codified Directive.  Future changes will concentrate on the content of the Directive, rather than its format.

For more information see EIA

According to the EDPS, the integration of two totally different functions in one single card, which would record a wide range of data about professional drivers including their activities and whereabouts, would have an impact on the fundamental right to the protection of data.

The EDPS encourages the Commission to consider the risks associated with the processing of personal data in interconnected intelligent transport systems.  He also particularly emphasises the need to conduct a privacy and security impact assessment before the merging of the driver cards with driving licences could take place.  He further recommends action to:

• evaluate the impact of the use of a microchip in the driving licences
• ensure that the overall design of the processing is privacy friendly and proportionate to the purposes pursued
• specify the data or categories of data to be stored in the microchip, in compliance with the principles of proportionality and data minimisation
• provide sufficient guarantees for the effective exercise of data subjects’ rights
• ensure a strict limitation of access rights in view of the legitimate purposes for which relevant authorities and any other recipients would need to access the data.

The EDPS is an independent supervisory authority devoted to protecting personal data and privacy and promoting good practice in the EU institutions and bodies.

For more details about the proposal or the EDPS response, please contact the Enterprise Europe Network team on 0800 052 8156 or e-mail info@ee-yorkshire.com

With the world’s population likely to reach 9 billion by 2050 and finite natural resources, the Commission believes that Europe needs renewable biological resources for secure and healthy food and feed, as well as for energy, materials and other products. 

The term “bioeconomy” means an economy using biological resources from the land and sea, as well as waste, as inputs to food and feed, industrial and energy production.  It also covers the use of bio-based processes for sustainable industries.  For example, bio-waste has considerable potential as an alternative to chemical fertilizers or for conversion into bio-energy and can meet 2% of the EU renewable energy target.

The Commission’s proposed strategy sets out an approach towards the goal of a more innovative and low-emissions economy.  It seeks to reconcile demands for sustainable agriculture and fisheries, food security and the sustainable use of biological resources for industrial purposes, whilst ensuring biodiversity and environmental protection.

The plan focuses on three key aspects:  developing new technologies and processes for the bioeconomy; developing markets and competitiveness in bioeconomy sectors; and pushing policymakers and stakeholders to work more closely together.

To read more about the proposed strategy and action plan, see Bioeconomy or call the Enterprise Europe Network on 0800 052 8156 or e-mail info@ee-yorkshire.com
 

Released by the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA), the inventory allows the identification of those chemicals that are potentially hazardous and damaging to health or the environment.  The aim is to provide industry, and in particular small companies, with easy access to information on the hazardousness of a given substance.  It is hoped that this will make the task of classifying and labelling chemicals and mixtures easier, as well as facilitate the substitution of hazardous substances with less damaging alternatives where feasible.

The inventory brings together information from over 3 million notifications for more than 100,000 substances submitted by manufacturers and importers or registered under the chemicals regulation, known as REACH. 

It is expected that it will include divergent information for identical substances, as different classifications may have been notified by different companies for the same hazardous chemical.  It is hoped that the inventory will be a basis for companies to try to agree on a uniform classification for a given substance, as required by the EU regulation on classification and labelling. 

To help companies do this, ECHA will develop a tool to facilitate contacts between firms to discuss the reasons for the differences.  Manufacturers and importers are being encouraged to check the classifications of their substances in the inventory and update their notifications if necessary.  The ECHA will regularly update its content.

To find out more and to access the inventory, click here. 
 

Wine growers who meet the requirements of the rules will be allowed to use the term “organic wine” on their products'  labels.  The labels must also show the EU organic logo and the code number of their certifier, as well as respecting other general wine labelling regulations.

Up to now there have been rules for wine made from organic grapes, but these do not cover wine-making practices, i.e. the whole process from grape to wine.  Wine has been the one remaining sector not fully covered by the EU rules on organic farming.

The Commission hopes that the new provisions will not only help consumers recognise organic wines more easily but also strengthen the position of EU organic wines at international level.  Many other wine-producing countries including Australia, the USA and South Africa have already established organic standards.

Under the new rules, the use of sorbic acid and desulfurication will not be allowed and the level of sulphites in organic wines must be at least 30-50mg per litre lower than their conventional equivalents (depending on residual sugar content). 

For more information about organic food and wine production in the EU, please contact the Enterprise Europe Network Yorkshire team on 0800 052 8156 or e-mail info@ee-yorkshire.com
 

The 2011 Scoreboard draws on 24 indicators that are grouped into three main categories and 8’dimensions’:

• Enablers – i.e. the basic building blocks which allow innovation to take place (human resources; open, excellent and attractive research systems; finance and support)

• Firm activities – these capture innovation in European firms (firm investments; linkages & entrepreneurship; intellectual assets)

• Outputs – these show how the above firm activities translate into benefits for the economy as a whole (innovators and economic effects, including employment)

The Commission believes that firms’ innovation activities stand out as an important factor to achieve top positions at EU and international level.  According to the latest Scoreboard there is not one single way to reach top innovation performance but it seems clear that all innovation leaders perform very well in R&D expenditures, including of firms.  Most of the innovation leaders also perform very well in other innovation indicators related to firm activities.  The top EU innovation performer, Sweden, dominates in three out of eight innovation categories:  human resources, finance and support, and firm investments.  The top EU innovators also score highly in the commercialisation of their technological knowledge.

For more information see summaries of individual rankings of EU27 and the full report.

Humber Renewables Awards 2012

It gives us great pleasure to inform you that an independent panel of judges have placed  our very own Tim Barraclough of Enterprise Europe Network Yorkshire (EENY) on the final shortlist for the Humber  Renewables Champion 2012.

The Humber Renewables Awards are prestigious, region-wide business-to-business awards dedicated to the renewable energy industry.

Hosted by Footprint Renewables in association with Mail News & Media, the 8 award categories will recognise and reward local businesses that are committed to the success and development of renewable energy in the Humber region. Nominees will be narrowed down to a shortlist and the winner will be selected by an esteemed panel of judges, made up of representatives of industry and local bodies.

I'm sure you will join us in wishing Tim Barraclough all the best on the night.

Date

Friday 2nd March. 7pm arrival 

The Venue

The Humber Renewables Awards will be held at The Deep - an award winning visitor attraction overlooking the Humber.

For further information on Humber Renewables Award 2012: http://www.footprintrenewables.co.uk/awards.php

The 15 substances include industrial chemicals as well as substances used in biocides, pharmaceuticals and plant protection products.  They have been selected on the basis that they may pose a significant risk to health. The update will be achieved through a revision of the Directive on priority substances in the field of water quality. 

The newly proposed substances are the outcome of a review that considered the risks posed by some 2000 substances according to their levels in surface waters, and their hazardousness, production and use.  For six of the 15 new priority substances, the classification proposed would require their emission to water to be phased out within 20 years.  The proposal also includes stricter standards for 4 currently controlled substances, and a requirement to phase out emissions of two others already on the list.

The proposed 15 additional priority substances are:

• Plant protection product substances: Aclonifen, Bifenox, Cypermethrin, Dicofol, Heptachlor, Quinoxyfen

• Substances used in biocidal products: Cybutryne, Dichlorvos, Terbutryn

• Industrial chemicals: Perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS), Hexabromocyclododecane (HBCDD)

 • Combustion by-products: Dioxin and Dioxin-Like PCBs
 
• Pharmaceutical substances: 17 alpha-ethinylestradiol (EE2), 17 beta-estradiol (E2), Diclofenac

Pharmaceuticals are proposed for the first time.  The proposal does not put into question the medicinal value of these substances, but addresses the potential harmful effects of their presence in the aquatic environment.  Also proposed are improvements to the monitoring and reporting of chemical pollutants in water, as well as a mechanism to obtain better information on the concentrations of other pollutants that might need to be controlled in the future at EU level.

The Commission is proposing the revised list as part of a Directive amending the Water Framework Directive (WFD) and Environmental Quality Standards Directive (EQSD).  The proposal will pass to the Council and the Parliament for discussion and adoption.  As a rule, Member States would have to meet environmental quality standards for new Priority Substances by 2021.  Longer timelines are possible in specific cases if the conditions for exemptions set out in the WFD are applicable.

For further information on the proposals see FAQs on Priority Substances.

The European Commission received 590 responses to the online questionnaire and 101 ad hoc position papers by national and European research organisations and governments.  Respondents to the online survey indicated deficiencies in research careers and mobility as the most urgent priority.  This was followed by problems relating to research infrastructures, knowledge transfer and cross-border collaboration.  A broad majority of respondents also highlighted that a higher involvement of women in science will contribute to European socio-economic growth.  In position papers, cross-border collaboration and international co-operation, as well as open access to publications and data were on a similar footing to researcher-related issues.

One of the main messages from the research community is the need to attract and retain more leading researchers in Europe and to provide researchers with better and especially business-relevant skills.  The global attractiveness of Europe as a location for researchers and private R&D investment should also be increased by reducing the fragmentation of the European market, and by improving employment and career prospects for researchers.  The lack of open and transparent recruitment procedures is regarded as one of the main barriers to internationally mobile researchers.  It is also necessary to coordinate research at transnational level to raise research quality, reduce costs and tackle global challenges.

In Feburary 2011, EU heads of state and government endorsed the Commission’s proposal to create Innovation Union (which means more jobs, improved lives and society) and called for the completion of the European Research Area by 2014 to create a genuine single market for knowledge research and innovation.  The ERA Framework will focus on non-funding measures, while Horizon 2020 is the financial support of the Innovation Union.

To read more information on the results of the recent ERA consultation see preliminary report.  You can also find out more about the Innovation Union, it's key initiatives and what it means to you as a European Citizen, an Entrepreneur and a Researcher if you click here.

Technological progress and globalisation have profoundly changed the way our data is collected, accessed and used.  In addition, the 27 EU Member States have implemented the 1995 rules differently, resulting in divergences in enforcement.

A single law plans to do away with current fragmentation and costly administrative burdens, leading to potential savings for businesses of around €2.3bn (just under £2bn).  It is hoped the initiative will help reinforce consumer confidence in online services, providing a much needed boost to growth, jobs and innovation in Europe.

In the digital age, the collection and storage of personal information are essential.  Data is used by all businesses – from insurance firms and banks to social media sites and search engines.  In a globalised world, the transfer of data to third countries has become an important factor in daily life.  There are no borders online and cloud computing means data may be sent from Berlin to be processed in Boston and stored in Bangalore.

The Commission's proposals update and modernise the principles enshrined in the 1995 Data Protection Directive to guarantee privacy rights in the future.  They include a policy report setting out the Commission's objectives and two legislative proposals: a Regulation setting out a general EU framework for data protection and a Directive on protecting personal data processed for the purposes of prevention, detection, investigation or prosecution of criminal offences and related judicial activities.

Some of the key changes in the reform include a ‘right to be forgotten’, which will allow people to better manage their data protection risks online where they will be able to delete their data if there are no legitimate grounds for retaining it.  Independent national data protection authorities will be empowered to fine companies that violate EU data protection rules.  This could lead to penalties of up to €1 million or up to 2% of the global annual turnover of a company.

Reforming the current legislation would ensure that EU rules should apply if personal data is handled abroad by companies that are active in the EU market and offer their services to EU citizens.  There would also be increased responsibility and accountability for those processing personal data.  Companies and organisations would need to notify the national supervisory authority of serious data protection breaches as soon as possible (within 24 hours if feasible).  This is instead of the current obligation of all companies notifying all data protection activities to data protection supervisors, where unnecessary paperwork costs businesses an estimated €130 million per year.

The Commission's proposals will now be passed on to the European Parliament and EU Member States (meeting in the Council of Ministers) for discussion.  They will take effect two years after they have been adopted.  Frequently asked questions can be accessed here.
 

The signing of the Accession Treaty of Croatia with the European Union on 9 December 2011 marked a final step in a six year period of negotiations since the country applied for membership in 2003.  It became a candidate country in 2004 and accession negotiations followed in October 2005.

Croatian citizens have subsequently given their endorsement in a January 2012 referendum on its accession to the European Union.

The European Commission also signed an agreement a few days after Croatia’s signature of the accession treaty of the European Union to help train the country’s judiciary ahead of the country’s accession to the EU.  The Accession Treaty with Croatia still has to be ratified by the governments of all 27 Member States plus Croatia before it can become the 28th member of the European Union in July 2013. 

To find more information on European judicial training and justice issues in EU enlargement click on justice and enlargement respectively.
 

With 1% annually, the employment growth for SMEs was higher than for large enterprises with 0.5%.  A clear exception is the trade sector, in which employment in SMEs increased by 0.7% annually, compared to 2.2% in large enterprises.  Within the SME size-class, micro firms (less than 10 employees) are responsible, with 58%, for the highest proportion of net total growth in the business economy.  Secondly new firms (younger than five years) are responsible for an overwhelming majority of the new jobs.  New enterprises operating in businesses services create more than a quarter (27%) of the new jobs, while the new firms in transport and communication contribute least (6%).

The economic crisis has, according to the survey, left its mark on enterprises from all size-classes, with micro firms being particularly vulnerable.  As a result of the crisis, the number of jobs in the SME sector has on average decreased by 2.4% annually.  Expectations for 2011 were improving at the time the survey was carried out.  Besides the employment effects,  by far the most negative effect of the crisis on firms is the overall decline of total demand for their products and services, followed by the increase in customer payment terms and finally the shortage of working capital.

Innovation seems to have a positive effect.  The survey underlines that innovative SMEs or companies operating in more innovative economies suffered less from the economic crisis.  For example, while the decline in overall demand is mentioned by 70% of enterprises in countries that are considered modest innovators, the corresponding figure is 45% for countries which are innovation leaders.

The European Commission believes that the results of the SME study show that small and new enterprises are the key for restoring economic growth.

For more information see Do SMEs create more and better jobs?

Its proposal is a first step towards a One Stop Shop for all electronically delivered services that should benefit businesses from 1 January 2015.  The One Stop Shop approach for EU trade across borders will be applied first to e-commerce, broadcasting and telecom services.  In the future the Commission will seek to extend the One Stop Shop step by step to other goods and services.

The proposal relates to the scope of the One Stop Shop (OSS) scheme, reporting obligations, VAT returns, currency, payments, records and so on for which common rules are necessary.  The Commission believes that the implementation of a mini One Stop Shop for the EU providers of telecommunications, broadcasting and electronic services to consumers will be a big step forward in simplifying VAT compliance rules in the EU.  It will allow businesses to declare and pay the VAT in the Member State where they are established rather than where their customer belongs.

Currently, a One Stop Shop system is in place to simplify VAT obligations for non-EU suppliers of electronic services to EU consumers.  Non-EU traders who are liable to pay VAT in the EU choose a single place for VAT compliance and via a single electronic portal, a single VAT declaration and payment is submitted.  On the basis of the information supplied, this payment is allocated automatically to the different Member States where VAT is due. 

The new proposal will extend this scheme to both EU and non EU businesses and - in addition to electronic services – incorporate telecommunications and broadcasting services.  Suppliers will be able, from 1 January 2015, to use a web portal in the Member State in which they are identified, to account for the VAT due in other Member States on supplies of these services to private consumers.  The Commission is calling on all Member States to agree to these measures in 2012 given that a common approach is key to design the IT systems which will provide the necessary exchange of information between tax authorities in 27 Member States and to ensure full implementation by 2015.
 

However, the Commission finds that there are several obstacles preventing consumers and businesses from investing fully in online services.  That is why, as part of the Digital Agenda and the Single Market Act, it has adopted a Communication presenting 16 targeted initiatives aimed at doubling the share of e-commerce in retail sales (currently 3.4%) and that of the Internet sector in European GDP (currently less than 3%) by 2015.  By that year online trade and services could account for more than 20% or growth and net job creation in some Member States, such as the UK, Sweden, France and Germany).

The Communication puts forward an action plan aiming to facilitate cross-border access to online products and content, ultimately solve the problems of payment, delivery and consumer protection and information, and assist dispute resolution and the removal of illegal content.  The purpose is to create an environment more likely to foster a dynamic Digital Single Market by tackling the problems in its path.  At the same time, the aim is to promote investment in wireless connectivity and new-generation fixed infrastructure and support the development of cloud computing.

The Communication identifies the potential of e-commerce and online services to account for up to 20% of employment and growth over the next five years.  It goes on to list the obstacles to the development of the Internet economy:  a legal cross-border supply shortage, inadequate information and protection for consumers, inefficient deliveries and payments, illegal content that is still too difficult to manage, and the dangers of the spread of cybercrime.

For more information see FAQs on Communication on e-commerce.

In the past, the consultation period has been 8 weeks.  From 2012 businesses, individuals and organisations such as charities and trade associations will have at least 12 weeks to comment on plans for new EU policies and legislation.

The aim is to make it easier for them to get involved in EU policy-making and in particular to encourage those whose voice has been under-represented up to now, such as small businesses.

Enterprise Europe regularly publishes details of opportunities to “have your say” on our website and in our newsletter.  Click here for details of current consultations or call our hotline on 0800 052 8156 or e-mail info@ee-yorkshire.com to find out how you can get involved.
 

Each year, public authorities spend 18% of GDP on goods, services and works.  Given the current budgetary restrictions in most Member States, the Commission believes that public procurement policy must ensure the optimal use of funds in order to foster growth and job creation.

The main objectives of the Commission’s proposal are to:

1.  Simplify rules and procedures and make them more flexible.  In particular this includes:
 

• the possibility of increased recourse to negotiation to enable authorities to purchase goods and services better tailored to their needs at the best price
• the extension and, in the medium term, generalisation of electronic communication in public procurement since it offers an essential means of simplifying public tendering
• a drastic cut in the administrative burden, including the number of documents required from businesses

2.  Encourage access to public procurement for SMEs:

• access will be increased and made easier through measures to cut the administrative burden and strong incentives to divide tenders into lots and limit the financial capacity requirements for submission of a tender

3.  Facilitate a qualitative improvement in the use of public procurement by ensuring greater consideration for social and environmental criteria such as life-cycle costs or the integration of vulnerable and disadvantaged persons

4.  The proposed reforms also include:

• improvements to the existing guarantees aimed at combating conflicts of interest, favouritism and corruption
• the appointment by the Members States of a single national authority responsible for monitoring, performing and checking public contracts to ensure the rules are properly applied in practice.

The modernisation programme also includes a proposed Directive on concessions, which until now have only been partially regulated at European level.  The proposal on concessions covers the partnership agreements between a body which is generally public and a business which is often private, where the latter assumes the operative risk linked to maintenance and development of infrastructures (ports, water distribution, car parks, toll roads etc.) or to the supply of services of general economic interest (energy, health, water supply and treatment, waste disposal etc.).

It aims to complete the European public procurement regime by including service concessions.  The proposed rules aim to establish a clear legal framework to ensure the necessary legal certainty for public authorities when performing their duties.  They aim to guarantee effective access to the concessions market for all European businesses, including SMEs, and could stimulate the development of public-private partnerships, for which concessions constitute a tool of choice.

The Commission’s proposals will go to the Council of Ministers and the European Parliament with a view to launching the legislative procedure for their adoption before the end of 2012.

For more information see FAQs on modernising the European public procurement market and FAQs on proposed Directive for award of concession contracts.

The proposal aims at simplifying the rules for the mobility of professionals within the EU, by offering a European Professional Card to all interested professions which would allow easier and faster recognition of qualifications.  It also clarifies the framework for consumers, by inviting Member States to review the scope of their regulated professions and by addressing public concerns about languages skills and the lack of effective alerts about professional malpractice, notably in the health sector.

Key elements of the proposal include:

• Introduction of a European professional card to offer interested professions the possibility of benefiting from easier and quicker recognition of their qualifications and facilitate temporary mobility.  The card will take the form of an electronic certificate.
• Better access to information on the recognition of professional qualifications – people should be able to use a one-stop shop service to be able to obtain information in one place about the documents required to have their qualifications recognised and where they can also complete online recognition procedures.
• Updating minimum training requirements for doctors, dentists, pharmacists, nurses, midwives, veterinary surgeons and architects.  The minimum training requirements for these professions were harmonised 20 or 30 years ago.
• The introduction of an alert mechanism for health professionals benefiting from automatic recognition, so that competent authorities from a Member State will be obliged to alert all the authorities in other Member States about a health professional who has been prohibited from practising by a public authority or court.
• The introduction of common training framework programmes and common training tests where interested professions could benefit from automatic recognition on the basis of a common set of knowledge, skills and competences or on a common test assessing the ability of professionals to pursue a profession.
• Mutual evaluation exercise for regulated professions – a new mechanism to ensure greater transparency and justification of the professions they regulate through a specific qualification requirement.  Member States will have to provide a list of their regulated professions and justify the need for regulation.

For more information see FAQs on modernising the Professional Qualifications Directive

Environmental Technology Verification (ETV) is a pilot programme which is designed to help manufacturers prove the reliability of any performance claims they make and to help technology purchasers identify innovations that suit their needs.

The scheme, which is entirely voluntary, will initially cover three areas:  water treatment and monitoring; materials, waste and resources; and energy technologies.  The aim is to reduce the risks and increase confidence of the first buyers or investors in a new technology by providing reliable, science-based information on its performance.  This evidence will take the form of a Statement of Verification.

ETV services are intended in particular for small & medium sized enterprises (SMEs) who may find it more difficult to prove performance of their new products than larger manufacturers. 

The programme will begin by accrediting the Verification Bodies (VBs) and interested organisations are being invited to contact their national accreditation body (available on the website of European Cooperation for Accreditation - click here).  In the coming months, a call for proposals will be issued to support accredited VBs to implement the pilot.  After 2-3 years, the Commission will evaluate ETV and its impact, before proposing the way forward for the programme.

For more information, visit the ETV website or contact Enterprise Europe Network Yorkshire on 0800 052 8156 or e-mail info@ee-yorkshire.com
 

The new Eco-Innovation Action Plan (Eco-AP) builds on the 2004 Environmental Technologies Action Plan (ETAP), expanding the focus from just green technologies to the broader concept of eco-innovation.  The aim is to bridge the gap between innovation and the market, increasing competitiveness and helping to create new jobs.

The Commission defines eco-innovation as any form of innovation that results in, or aims at, significant and demonstrable progress towards the goal of sustainable development.  This can be done through reducing impacts on the environment, enhancing resilience to environmental pressures or through achieving a more efficient and responsible use of natural resources.  Eco-industries currently account for about 2.5% of the EU economy.

Key aspects of the new plan include:

• using environmental policy and legislation to help drive eco-innovation;
• supporting demonstration projects and partnering, to bring promising, smart and ambitious technologies to market;
• developing new standards to boost eco-innovation;
• mobilising finance and support services for small & medium sized businesses (SMEs)
• promoting international cooperation in this field
• supporting the development of emerging skills and jobs, and related training programmes, in order to match labour market needs;  and
• promoting eco-innovation through so-called European Innovation Partnerships.

Implementation of the plan will be achieved through partnerships between a wide range of stakeholders in both the public and private sector, as well as the Commission. 

For more information on the EcoAP programme, please click here or contact the Enterprise Europe team on 0800 052 8156 or e-mail info@ee-yorkshire.com
 

By providing companies with access to these  world-class facilities it is hoped that this will accelerate the development and commercialisation of marine renewable energy technology. 

It is anticipated that there will be at least four calls for applications between now and the completion of the project in 2015, with the first call launching this month. 

For more information, please go to Cordis and University College Cork.

Proposals to reduce burdensome accounting rules for so called ‘micro-entities’ were tabled by the European Commission in 2009.  A micro-entity is a company which does not exceed at least two of the following three criteria:  total assets of up to €350,000; net turnover of up to €700,000; a maximum of 10 employees.  Under the revised Accounting Directive (known as the Fourth Directive) micro-entities can be treated as a separate category of company for the first time.

From next year, under the new rules, Member States will be able to exempt micro-entities from certain accounting requirements, and therefore make their financial reporting simpler.  When it comes to publishing accounts, governments will be able to create a ‘one-stop shop’ which would see micro-entities only having to send their accounts to the tax administration, which would in turn be responsible for passing the accounts onto the Company Registry.  Currently, in many countries micro-entities have to file a full set of financial statements, including the balance sheet and profit and loss account, and are required to disclose this through publication in a national gazette.

The simplifications proposed by the Directive are only optional.  It will be up to each Member State to decide the extent to which they make use of the new possibilities offered.  It means that the Member States can decide to keep in full the current requirements of the Accounting Directives, or exempt micro-entities where that possibility now exists.

In October the Commission launched a proposal to simplify also accounting rules for small and medium-sized enterprises.

For more information see FAQs on burden reduction for micro-entities.

These actions should position the EU as the global leader in the re-use of public sector information.  They will boost the thriving industry that turns raw data into the material that hundreds of millions of ICT users depend on, for example smart phone apps, such as maps, real-time traffic and weather information, price comparisons and more.  Studies on the current situation conducted on behalf of the Commission show that industry and citizens still face difficulties in finding and re-using public sector information.  For example in the case of geographical information, almost 80% of the respondents to Commission surveys day that they are prevented from making full use of information held by public bodies.  Reasons include high fees, non-transparent rules and practices regarding re-use and a lack of transparency on what type of data is help and by whom.

The Commission proposes to update the 2003 Directive on the re-use of public sector information by:

• Making it a general rule that all documents made accessible by public sector bodies can be re-used for any purpose, commercial or non-commercial, unless protected by third party copyright

• Establishing the principle that public bodies should not be allowed to charge more than costs triggered by the individual request for data (marginal costs)

• Making it compulsory to provide data in commonly-used, machine-readable formats to ensure data can be effectively re-used

• Introducing regulatory oversight to enforce these principles

• Massively expanding the reach of the Directive to include libraries, museums and archives for the first time

In addition the Commission will also make its own data public through a new ‘data portal’.  This portal is currently in the development and testing phase with an expected launch in spring 2012.  In time this will serve as a single-access point for re-useable data from all EU institutions, bodies, agencies and national authorities.

For more information see Open Data Strategy Q&A.

The fund is earmarked for established sectors such as aerospace, automotive and chemicals, as well as growth areas such as renewables and low carbon.  

Applications will be assessed by the Technology Strategy Board and will complement orther schemes such as the Regional Growth Fund. 

For more information, please click here. 

The Commission believes that the LIFE Programme is key to designing better environmental policy and is proposing to triple the funds for climate in the new programme to allow increased support to regional low-carbon and climate-resilience strategies and small-scale climate projects by SMEs, NGOs and local authorities.

New aspects of the proposed future LIFE Programme include:

• Creation of a sub-programme for Climate Action
• Clearer definition of priorities
• New possibilities to implement programmes on a larger scale through ‘integrated projects’ to help mobilise other EU, national and private funds for environmental or climate objectives

The sub-programme for Environment would support efforts in the following areas:

• Environment and Resource Efficiency – to focus on more innovative solutions for better implementation of environment policy and integrating environmental objectives in other sectors
• Biodiversity – to develop best practices to halt biodiversity loss and restore ecosystem services, whilst continuing to support the Natura 2000 network of protected sites
• Environmental Governance and Information – to promote knowledge sharing, dissemination of best practices, and better compliance, in addition to awareness raising campaigns

The sub-programme for Climate Action would cover the following areas:

• Climate Action Mitigation – to focus on reducing greenhouse gas emissions
• Climate Change Adaptation – to focus on increasing resilience to climate change
• Climate Governance and Information - to focus on increasing awareness, communication, co-operation and dissemination on climate mitigation and adaptation actions

The LIFE Programme was launched in 1992 as one of the spearheads of EU environmental funding.  The proposals for the new programme seek to build upon evaluation of previous experience, and the results of public consultations which show that eco-innovation projects in climate change, water and waste have been the most successful in achieving direct environmental benefits.

For more information see Questions on Answers on LIFE proposal.

Some of the funding will be delivered by the Technology Strategy Board through their programmes, such as the Smart scheme (previously Grant for Research and Development) and the SBRI programme, the extension of their Launchpad initiative as well as a new innovation voucher programme. 

More here. 

The Commission proposes that noise limit values would be lowered in two steps of each 2 decibels for passenger cars, vans, buses, and coaches.  For trucks, the reduction would be 1 decibel in the first step and 2 decibels in the second.  The first step would be applied after two years following publication of the legal text, once approved by the European Parliament and Member States.  The second is foreseen three years thereafter.   Altogether these measures are estimated to reduce noise nuisance by some 25%.

In addition, a new and more reliable test method to measure sound emissions has been put forward.  This will take into account so-called additional sound emission provisions (ASEP).  These are preventive requirements designed to ensure that the sound emissions of a vehicle under street driving conditions will not differ significantly from what can be expected from the type-approval test result for this specific vehicle.

Under the proposed law, hybrid electric vehicles can be fitted optionally with sound generating devices which would make these cars safer.  Only adequate sound generating devices are used which aims also to lead to a harmonisation of the applied technology.  The fitting, as such, would remain an option for the vehicle manufacturer.

According to the World Health Organisation, traffic related noise may account for 1 million healthy years of life lost per year in Western Europe.  The Commission hopes that the proposal will significantly reduce the levels of noise and consequently the number of people affected by it.   Hopefully, it will make international industry rules clearer, so that it will be easier for European manufacturers to sell cars outside the EU.  With the same basic rules throughout Europe, it could also make it easier to buy and sell vehicles in any Member State.

The proposal is now in the process of being submitted to the European co-legislators, the European Parliament and the Council for consideration.

More information on noise emissions of motor vehicles can be found here or click here to read further about the European Commission’s automotive policy.  If you have any questions, please contact Enterprise Europe Network Yorkshire on 0800 052 8156.
 

In addition, the report argues that in the current economic climate, offshore wind provides a significant opportunity for growth and job creation, as well as for cementing Europe's future as a leader in renewable energy. 

The full report can be found here. 

Enterprise Europe Network in Yorkshire has been very active in the field, working with stakeholders in supporting the local offshore wind sector and promoting the Yorkshire and Humber region as a hub for offshore wind developments. For further information on our offshore wind-related activities, please contact Tim Barraclough at tbarraclough@targetinginnovation.com. 

The label is part of a proposal for an EU Regulation addressing social investment funds which, at present, are reportedly rare or not large enough.  In addition, measures aim to ensure such cross-border social investment funds are not unnecessarily complicated and expensive.

Once the requirements defined in the proposal are met, managers of social investment funds will be able to market their funds across the whole of Europe.  To get the label, a fund will have to prove that a high percentage of investments (70% of the capital received from investors) is spent in supporting social business.  Uniform rules on disclosure hope to ensure that investors get clear and effective information on these investments.

Social businesses are companies that have a positive impact and address social objectives as their corporate aim rather than only maximising profit.  They already represent 10% of all European businesses employing over 11 million paid employees.

Besides a recognised EU brand for social entrepreneurship funds, another key element of the proposal is improved investor information.  Just as investors can find it difficult to identify funds investing in social businesses, the information available about these funds and what they are doing can be difficult to compare and use.  So all funds that use the new brand in future will need to publish clear information about the kinds of social businesses they target, how they are selected, the ways the fund will help these businesses, and how social impacts will be monitored and reported.

Better performance measures are expected to set out clear requirements for funds to inform investors on how they will go about monitoring and reporting impacts, to allow transparency and greater investor confidence.  The Commission also plans to undertake work to develop better and more comparable ways on how the social performance of investments can be measured.

Rules currently targeting investment funds differ per Member State and are often onerous and complex.  Fund managers will not be forced to use the new framework, but they will be able to gain access to investors across Europe if they do and a recognisable EU brand that the Commission hopes investors will grow to trust.

As investing in social business can be risky, the “European Social Entrepreneurship Funds” label would at the start only be available to professional investors.   Once the framework is up and running, the Commission will then examine measures to make such investments also available to retail customers.

The proposals will need to go the European Parliament and the Council for negotiation and adoption under what is known as the ‘co-decision’ procedure for making EU law.

More information can be obtained here.

The Communication sets out the fundamental characteristics that the Commission thinks should underlie a new VAT regime, together with priority actions needed to create a simpler, more efficient and more robust VAT system in the EU.

The following objectives are outlined in the Communication:

• VAT should be made more workable for businesses.  A simpler, more transparent VAT system would relieve businesses of considerable administrative burdens and encourage greater cross-border trade.  Among the measures envisaged for a more business-friendly VAT are: expanding the one-stop shop approach for cross border transactions; standardising VAT declarations; providing clear and easy access to the details of all national VAT regimes via a central web-portal.
• VAT should be made more efficient in supporting Member States’ fiscal consolidation efforts and sustainable economic growth.  Broadening tax bases and limiting the use of reduced rates could generate new revenue for Member States without the need for rate increases.  The Communication sets out the principles that should guide a review of exemptions and reduced rates.
• The huge revenue losses that occur due to uncollected VAT and fraud need to be stopped.  It is estimated that 12% of the total VAT which should be collected, Is not.  In 2012 the Commission will propose a quick reaction mechanism to ensure Member States can respond better to suspected fraud schemes.
• The Commission concludes that the long-standing question of changing to a VAT system based on taxation at origin is no longer relevant.   Therefore, VAT will continue to be collected in the country of destination (i.e. where the customer is located).

For more information see Questions and Answers on VAT.
 

The new SME risk-sharing instrument (RSI) will be managed by the European Investment Fund (EIF).  It will offer banks a guarantee on part of their new loans and leases to innovative SMEs, allowing the banks to lend more and to do so at more attractive rates.  The RSI aims to encourage banks to provide loans and leases of between €25, 000 and €7.5 million to SMEs and smaller mid-sized firms undertaking research, development or innovation, with loan periods from two to seven years, and with the risk finance covering investments in assets (tangible or intangible) and / or working capital.

The EIF will enter into individual guarantee agreements with banks following the submission of applications to the EIF under an open call for expressions of interest, which will be launched in early 2012.  Applicants will be treated on a first come, first served basis subject to their meeting the requirements of the EIF’s standard screening and due diligence procedures.  Some ten or so banks are likely to be involved, and the RSI plans to reach up to 500 beneficiaries with a total loan volume of up to €1.2 billion.

The proposed Programme for the Competitiveness of Enterprises and SMEs (COSME for short) foresees a package of measures for the benefit of existing and would-be entrepreneurs, financed to the tune of €2.5bn.  They include:

• measures to improve access to finance, in the form of equity and loan  facilities.  These will be offered by working with financial intermediaries in the EU Member States;
• support for SMEs wishing to access new markets, both within and outside the EU, primarily via the services of the Enterprise Europe Network;
• activities to promote entrepreneurship, through the development of entrepreneurial skills and attitudes especially amongst new entrepreneurs, young people and women. 

COSME is expected to assist some 39,000 firms per annum, helping them to create or save some 29,500 jobs and launch 900 new products or services.  Over half of the proposed funding will be dedicated to improving access to finance.

The proposal now goes to the European Parliament and the Council of Ministers for their consideration. 

For further details of the proposed programme, please click here or contact the Enterprise Europe Network team on 0800 052 8156, e-mail info@ee-yorkshire.com
 

Known as Horizon 2020, the programme brings together for the first time all EU research and innovation funding under a single programme.  It would follow on from the current programme, known as Framework Programme 7 (FP7) and run from 2014 -2020. The aim is to focus more than ever on turning scientific breakthroughs into innovative products and services that will provide business opportunities and improve quality of life.

Horizon 2020 will focus on three key objectives: 

• support for the EU’s position as a world leader in science, with a dedicated budget of €24.6bn;
• €17.9bn to secure industrial leadership in innovation;
• support for research in key areas of concern, including health and well-being,  sustainable agriculture, energy, transport; the climate and resource efficiency.  €31.7bn will be devoted to this objective.

At the same time, steps are to be taken to cut the red tape traditionally associated with applying for EU R&D funding, by simplifying the rules and procedures involved.  This will involve the introduction of a single access point for participants, less paperwork when preparing proposals and a simplified system for the rates of financial support.

As part of the programme, there is a proposal to increase the funding made available to the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT).  Set up in 2008, the EIT brings together higher education institutions, research centres and businesses to drive the creation of innovative businesses.  To date, 3 cross-border public-private partnerships (known as Knowledge and Innovation Communities) have been set up, focussing on the themes of sustainable energy, climate change and the information & communication society.  A further 6 KICs are planned by 2018.

The Horizon 2020 proposal will now go to the European Parliament and the Council for consideration.  For further details of the proposed programme and the research priorities, please click here or contact the Enterprise Europe Network team on 0800 052 8156, e-mail info@ee-yorkshire.com

A wide range of technologies and methods exist to improve energy efficiency, turn renewables into viable energy sources and reduce emissions.  However, market conditions prevent them from reaching their full potential.  The European Commission's Executive Agency for Competitiveness and Innovation (EACI) has released the selection results for the 2011 call for project proposals under the Intelligent Energy - Europe (IEE) programme.

Negotiations should start soon with the 54 projects which were selected from over 340 proposals to receive a share of the €66 million (approximately £56 million) available under the 2011 call.  These 54 multi-national projects were tabled by over 600 organisations across Europe.  They focus on energy efficiency, renewable energy sources, clean transport and mobilising local energy investments.

The IEE programme is a key contributor to the EU 20/20/20 energy targets and aims to boost clean and sustainable solutions.  It supports their use and dissemination and the Europe-wide exchange of related knowledge and know-how.  For more information on the IEE programme and for the list of 54 projects selected for funding in 2011 please visit here.

From now on, the Commission will seek wherever possible to exempt micro-enterprises from EU legislation or introduce special regimes so as to minimise the regulatory burden on them.  Micro-enterprises are those employing less than 10 people and a turnover of less than €2m.  In a report to the Council and the European Parliament, the Commission presents a list of initiatives of this kind already taken and to be examined for the future. 

As of January 2012 the Commission will further:

• step up the search for exemptions or lighter requirements for micro-enterprises in existing and new legislation
• strengthen the processes by which micro-enterprises and other SMEs are consulted when reviewing existing EU regulation and preparing new EU laws
• produce annual scoreboards to evaluate the real benefits for businesses and to ensure a continuing focus on their needs and interests

The Commission believes that the smallest enterprises have a central role in economic growth and job creation, but are also the most vulnerable, with regulation up to ten times more expensive for them than for larger companies.  The newly announced initiatives are the latest in a series under the Smart Regulation agenda which aims at improving legislation for European business.

For the full Commission report see Minimising Regulatory Burden for SMEs.

The Commission has come to this conclusion based on the results of a public consultation and its third review of the scope of this service.  It has also concluded that it would not be appropriate, at this stage, to set at EU level a single broadband connection speed under the universal service rules, given the very different stages of development of telecoms networks in the Member States and the potential costs involved.

The universal service rules came into play in the late 1990s.  The main aim was to prevent social exclusion by ensuring that citizens in rural and remote areas or low-income households had affordable access to basic and essential telecoms services.  Current EU rules, under the Universal Service Directive of 2002, require Member States to ensure that citizens must be able to connect to the public phone network at a fixed location and access public phone services for voice and data with functional access to the Internet.  Since consumers have widespread affordable access to mobile communications, there is no need to include those services in the universal service obligations.

For more information see universal service.

10,000 Small Businesses is targeted at small businesses and social enterprises with clear ambitions to expand. The goal of the programme is to provide participants with tools and resources to help them lay the foundation for long-term sustainable growth and job creation in their communities.

10,000 Small Businesses is funded by the Goldman Sachs Foundation.

Curriculum

Participants will receive approx 100 hours of high quality, practically-focused business and management curriculum which is delivered over 12 sessions at Leeds.

To supplement the classroom learning, 10,000 Small Businesses provide a range of business support services to participants.

• Specialist Workshops designed to complement the curriculum sessions

• One-to-One Business Support in translating issues covered in the curriculum sessions into their business

• Complete the programme with a tailored Business Growth Plan

The following curriculum sessions are offered over the course of the programme:

• You and Your Business

• Growth and Opportunities

• Money and Metrics

• You are the Leader

• Sustainable Entrepreneurship

• It’s the People

• Marketing and Sales

• Strategic Growth Through Operations

• Finance for Growth

• Putting it all Together

For further information or register you interest please visit: http://business.leeds.ac.uk/corporate-relations/10000-small-businesses/

Creative Europe plans to build on the previous Culture and MEDIA programmes which have supported the cultural and audiovisual sectors for more than 20 years.  The European cultural and creative sectors represent around 4.5% of European GDP and account for some 3.8% of the EU workforce (8.5 million people).  The new programme would allocate more than €900 million (approximately £774 million) in support of the cinema and audiovisual sector and almost €500 million (approximately £430 million) for culture.

The Commission intends that the Creative Europe proposal would enable:

• 300,000 artists and cultural professionals and their work to receive funding to reach new audiences beyond their home countries
• more than 1000 European films would receive distribution support
• at least 2,500 European cinemas would receive funding enabling them to ensure that at least 50% of the films they screen are European
• more than 5,500 books and other literary works would receive support for translation
• thousands of cultural organisations and professionals would benefit from training to gain new skills and to strengthen their capacity to work internationally
The Creative Europe proposal is now under discussion by the Council and the European Parliament who will take the final decision on the budgetary framework for 2014 to 2020.

For more information see Creative Europe FAQs.

It is open to all businesses in Yorkshire & Humber which are focused towards advanced engineering.

Consultancy from an expert provider can be part-funded for businesses looking to undertake a short, high impact development project to develop or improve products or processes, increase market share or penetration, evaluate the potential for new markets, products or services, redesign a factory layout etc,

Market surveillance and customs officers should be able to check the safety of products using more effective tools.  In addition, Member States can improve the supervision of monitoring bodies that check the conformity of products within EU law, for example ensuring that the CE marking has been properly applied by manufacturers.

Certain provisions of the nine Directives are being aligned with model provisions developed at EU level to overcome divergences in EU law which make life hard for businesses.  In the future, producers, importers and distributors should profit from uniform trading conditions.  At the same time, this process should further improve the safety of products on sale in the EU by strengthening compliance procedures and make it easier to keep non-compliant products off the market.

The changes made to the nine Directives on alignment relate to definitions (for example ‘manufacturer’, ‘making available on the market’, ‘CE marking’), the obligations of businesses, traceability requirements, conformity assessment bodies and procedures, CE marking etc.

The nine Directives concerned are:

• Low Voltage Directive
• Electromagnetic Compatibility Directive
• Simple Pressure Vessels Directive
• Measuring instruments Directive
• Non-automatic Weighing Instruments Directive
• Civil Explosives Directive
• Pyrotechnic articles Directive
• Directive on equipment used in potentially explosive atmospheres (ATEX)
• Lifts Directive

All products in the nine sectors marketed in the EU must carry a CE conformity marking, which is the manufacturer’s declaration that they satisfy all of the essential requirements of the applicable Directive(s).  Products that are CE marked enjoy free circulation in the European Economic Area.  Before obtaining the CE mark a manufacturer has to carry out a safety and conformity assessment.  The manufacturer has to establish more comprehensive technical documentation for products and must ensure traceability.  Importers into the EU must check whether manufacturers have carried out conformity assessment of products correctly and, in necessary, must carry out random test themselves.

For more information see single market for goods.

Smart UK Project aims to reward mobile innovation.  If you have a UK mobile company doing something special or new, with global appeal and potential for export, please do enter.  It is very quick and simple to do so.

Shortlisted companies will be invited to an exclusive media networking event in January to meet the press and demonstrate their innovation. 
Last year’s event resulted in media profile for UK companies on the BBC, The Times, The Wall Street Journal, Sky News and a host of other trade and consumer press.

Finalists will pitch their innovation to judges from industry, finance and the media as part of UKTI’s programme of events at Mobile World Congress. 

The winner will be invited to participate in a high profile technology event during 2012 as well as being rewarded with the title UK’s Most Innovative Mobile Company.

It is completely free to enter the search for the UK’s Most Innovative Mobile Company competition.  

Further information can be found at

www.smartukproject.co.uk
Twitter: @smartukproject

Currently, manufacturers only produce relatively small volumes of electric vehicles in different world regions.  Under the proposed cooperating agreement, two informal working groups on electric vehicles will be set up to enhance regulatory cooperation.  The first group will focus on the safety aspects of electric vehicles and their components, including the battery.  It will cover the safety of occupants against electric shocks in-use, while recharging, as well as after an accident.  The second group will address environmental regulations applied to electric vehicles.

Taking into account that the rules for electro-mobility technologies are currently being developed on both sides of the Atlantic and Asia, the cooperation offers an opportunity to develop common approaches.  With increasing globalisation in the automotive industry, the international harmonisation of technical requirements for cars and other vehicles is a high priority.  Common technical requirements hope to reduce development costs and avoid duplication of administrative procedures.

For more information on the background to this agreement please click here to read more.
 

Mentors will be selected among businesswomen (or businessmen) who have personal experience of owning and managing a SME successfully for at least five years, are aware of specific challenges that women entrepreneurs face and are ready and willing to share their knowledge and know-how with their mentorees on a volunteering basis.  They should be available to meet regularly for a minimum of one year and be willing to engage with at least two mentorees.  The mentors shall meet with their mentorees to discuss current as well as strategic issues of the management or the mentorees’ companies, helping them to build the necessary knowledge, skills and confidence.  To avoid conflicts of interest, mentors will not be allowed to take an economic interest in their mentorees’ companies.

The UK government in its WES (The European network to promote women’s entrepreneurship) 2008 report mentions that women are the largest underrepresented group in terms of participation in enterprise.  Only 15% of the 4.7 million UK enterprises are majority women-led and if women started businesses at the same rate as men there would be 15,000 extra start-ups each year in the UK.  If the UK matched US levels of female entrepreneurship there would be 900,000 more businesses in the UK.

The European Network of Mentors for Women Entrepreneurs is one of the actions proposed in the 2011 Review of the Small Business Act for Europe.  It will cover 17 countries, including the UK.

For more information see encouraging women entrepreneurs.

The scheme will provide grants to support SMEs considering investing in new capital assets and creating new employment.

 Key features

The RBS and NatWest scheme is called the regional growth fund and will distribute £70 million.

The HSBC scheme is called the Assisted Asset Purchase Scheme and will distribute £25 million. 

• The funding will support new job-creating investment by SMEs across England, in particular parts that have become over-dependent on the public sector. 100 per cent of the RGF funding will be provided as grants to SMEs with the banks employing their regional networks to administer the schemes on a pro-bono basis.

• SMEs can qualify for a grant if they are going to invest in new capital assets, such as plant and machinery, and create new jobs – and cannot get normal bank finance.

• Grants of up to £500,000 will be awarded alongside the award of a new bank loan on commercial terms. 
  To qualify for the NatWest and RBS scheme, SMEs need a turnover of less than £25 million.

• To qualify for the HSBC scheme the SME will need a turnover of less than 50 million Euros. 
  The banks will not earn any fees to administer the scheme. Interest earned on any funds held on the bank’s balance sheet must be used for beneficiary grants or returned to the government.

For more information, please visit the BIS website here.

The new food Regulations will establish two new lists.  The first concerns additives in foodstuffs and it will come into application in June 2013.  The list, which is also available in a database online, will allow consumers, food business operators and control authorities to easily identify which additives are authorised in a particular foodstuff.  The second list regards additives in food ingredients, such as enzymes, flavourings and nutrients and it will apply 20 days after its publication in the EU’s Official Journal. 

The establishment of the two lists is seen as an important step in the implementation of framework Regulation No 1333/2008 on food additives, which was adopted in December 2008.  The framework requires that the use of additives is safe, technologically justified, does not mislead the consumer and has advantages and benefits for him/her.

From now on, the authorised uses of additives are listed according to the category of food to which they may be added.  The Commission considers this an important improvement compared to the old lists that were dispersed over several annexes in three different European Directives.  The new list makes it obvious, for instance, that in some food categories the authorised additives are very limited or even not allowed at all.  This is the case, for example, for unflavoured yoghurt, butter, compote, pasta, simple bread, honey, water and fruit juice.  In other categories, usually those concerning highly processed foodstuffs such as confectionary, snacks, sauces and flavoured drinks a large number of additives are authorised.

Apart from the establishment of the two lists, the new legislation also provides for:

• well determined conditions under which additives may be added to food
• a programme for the full re-evaluation of the safety of all authorised additives
• clear guidelines and instructions for the applicants requesting new uses of food additives

The Commission adopted a programme for the re-evaluation of all authorised food additives in March 2010.  The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) must re-evaluate all additives by 2020.  Re-evaluation is prioritised on the basis of when a food additive was last evaluated, the availability of new scientific information, the extent of use of a food additive and the human exposure to it.  Food colours are first on the priority list.  Seventeen colours have already been re-evaluated –the Commission has so far proposed revised use for three of them.  Due to new scientific information higher priority has been given to the sweetener aspartame,  which will be re-evaluated by September 2012.

For more information see Questions and Answers on Food Additives.

The fund is earmarked for established sectors such as aerospace, automotive and chemicals, as well as growth areas such as renewables and low carbon.  

Applications will be assessed by the Technology Strategy Board and will complement orther schemes such as the Regional Growth Fund. 

For more information, please click here. 

The Bank is to lend €220m (approximately £187m) for the integration of new machinery and tooling for production of the 100% electric LEAF car at the company’s plant in Sunderland.  Manufacturing will start in 2013, with an initial production capacity of around 50,000 vehicles a year.

The funding will also support construction of a new plant at Sunderland for the production of lithium-ion electric vehicle battery cells.  The two projects represent a £420m investment by the company, which will also be supported by a £20.7m Grant for Business Investment from the UK Government.  It is expected to maintain some 2,250 jobs at the site.

Reduction of carbon emissions linked to transport is a key objective of EIB lending to tackle climate change.  It has already supported electric vehicle development by a number of European manufacturers, alongside financing expansion of dedicated networks and charging stations across Europe.

For further information about the EIB and its investment priorities, click here or call the Enterprise Europe Network Yorkshire team on 0800 052 8156 or e-mail info@ee-yorkshire.com
 

Only 13 % of EU SMEs are internationally active outside the EU through trade, investment or other forms of cooperation with foreign partners.  The Commission in its report, ‘Small Business, Big World – a new partnership to help SMEs seize global opportunities’ suggests companies can profit better from fast growing markets like China, India, Russia or in other regions like South East Asia and Latin America.

Europe’s 23 million SMEs account for two thirds of jobs in the private sector and around 80 % of new jobs over the past five years have been created by these firms.  Sectors such as machinery and equipment or chemicals in Brazil or energy in India have already enabled EU companies to achieve significant results, and many more examples could be given. 

To pave the way for Europe's businesses, the Commission is working to establish a more coherent and effective EU strategy for supporting SMEs in international markets.  It suggests Europe needs to boost its internationalisation process and provide the necessary support to SMEs when going international. 

One of the ways suggested for improvement is to reinforce and improve the coordination of existing business support services, such as the Enterprise Europe Network.  SMEs would then have better access to more relevant information and assistance in their attempts to penetrate new priority markets and search for the right partners.

Other actions suggested in the new strategy include:

• Promoting clusters and networks for SME internationalisation;
• Orchestrating pan-European collaboration in priority markets to make the most of the public funds spent;
• Creating a single virtual gateway to information for SMEs wishing to do business beyond EU borders;
• Making support schemes at EU level more consistent to raise their impact - currently there are more than 300 support programmes at national level, often focusing on one growing region only, whilst in the meantime new growth regions have emerged.

Member States are encouraged to adopt a similar approach and work in close cooperation with the Commission in strengthening the support environment for European SMEs’ international growth.

Click here for more information on ‘Small Business, Big World a new partnership to help SMEs seize global opportunities’.  You can also access the report and other information on promoting international activities of SMEs here.

The TRILOGY project received the award for its outstanding contribution to internet architecture and protocols, which could help Europeans with faster, more reliable internet connections.

The three-year project was completed in March 2011 and brought together researchers and companies from seven countries, including the UK, to find methods of managing traffic so that congestion at choke points of the network is minimised, resulting in better quality connections for internet users.  With internet traffic reaching unprecedented levels (YouTube alone reaches 3 billion views per day) bandwith availability has decreased and at times there has been doubts over the strength of the internet design altogether.

The total budget for the TRILOGY project was €9.2m, with the EU contributing €5.9m.  The results of the research are already being taken up by the ICT industry and integrated into open source and other commercially available operating systems to ensure that internet connections become more resilient and flexible for all users.

Further information about the TRILOGY project can be found by clicking here.  For more information about how the EU’s 7th Framework Programme can support research in the field of ICT click here or call 0800 052 8156, e-mail info@ee-yorkshire.com
 

The Commission believes damage done to the environment and coastal economies can be significantly reduced if an effective emergency response plan is put in place beforehand.  Measures also need to be put into place to prevent accidents like Deepwater Horizon in the Gulf of Mexico from happening.  With this in mind, the new law aims to ensure that European offshore oil and gas production respects the world’s highest safety, health and environmental standards everywhere in the EU.

Under the control of the national regulatory authorities, European industry will need to assess and further improve safety standards for offshore operations on a regular basis.  This new approach will lead to a European risk assessment that upgrades continuously by taking into account new technology, new know-how and new risks.  It introduces requirements for effective prevention and response to a major accident, such as licensing,  independent verifiers and other new measures.

The licensing authorities in the Member States will have to make sure that only operators with sufficient technical and financial capacities necessary to control the safety of offshore activities and environmental protection are allowed to explore for, and produce oil and gas in EU waters.  Technical solutions presented by the operator that are critical for safety on the installation need to be verified by an independent third party prior to and periodically after the installation starts operating.

Under the new rules oil and gas companies would be fully liable for environmental damages caused to the protected marine species and natural habitats.  Companies will also have to prepare a Major Hazard Report for their installation, containing a risk assessment and an emergency response plan before exploration or production begins. These reports will need to be submitted to national authorities who will give a go-ahead if satisfied.

Emergency response plans will also need to be prepared by companies based on their rig or platform risk assessments and they will need to keep resources at hand to be able to put them into operation when necessary. Member States will likewise take full account of these plans when they compile national emergency plans. The plans will be periodically tested by the industry and national authorities.

Independent national competent authorities will be responsible for the safety of installations, who will verify through inspections the provisions for safety, environmental protection and emergency preparedness of rigs and platforms and the operations conducted on them.  If an operator does not respect the minimum standards, the competent authority will take enforcement action and/or impose penalties.  Ultimately, the operator will have to stop drilling or production operations if it fails to comply.

For more information see http://ec.europa.eu/energy/oil/offshore/standards_en.htm

One of the primary concerns of the Commission has been to reduce administrative burdens on small businesses.  Therefore, it is proposing to simplify the accounting rules for small & medium sized enterprises (SMEs), a step it believes could save them up to €1.7 billion (c. £1.45 billion) a year.

Another measure in the package is an initiative to support social enterprises, which aims to help this sector fulfil its unexploited potential.  The Social Business Initiative includes proposed action to give social enterprises better access to funding, to improve their visibility and to revise the rules on public purchasing and State aid for social and local services. This is accompanied by a strategy on Corporate Social Responsibility and both these initiatives are seen by the Commission to be part of its efforts to engage with the private sector on social and environmental issues.

Finally, the Commission is also proposing to improve transparency and promote sustainable business amongst large multinationals.  For example, if adopted, the system of Country-by-Country Reporting (CBCR) would require mining and forestry companies owned or based in the EU to be more open about taxes, royalties and bonuses paid worldwide.  The Commission is also proposing to amend existing transparency legislation to try to prevent investors from secretly building up a controlling stake in a listed company, a practice it believes can give rise to possible market abuse and low levels of investor confidence.

For more information on the new package of measures, see Responsible Business or contact the Enterprise Europe Network Yorkshire team on 0800 052 8156, e-mail info@ee-yorkshire.com
 

Blue Water Danbrit expects to see many on and off-shore wind projects around UK ports. The renewable energy industry will continue to grow and as a direct result of this, the renewable sector will become an important sector within the UK logistics sphere.   The joint venture will offer marine related services to the wind industry throughout the UK.

Peter Aarosin a director of Blue Water Danbrit commented “It’s great that the joint venture has handled its first shipment.  It demonstrates for us that the sector is here and growing.  The company has already got a healthy pipeline and we are continuing to develop and expand this.”

Tim Barraclough of Targeting Innovation also commented: “It’s encouraging to see a joint venture such as Blue Water Danbrit taking place and we are pleased to have played a part in the initial introductions.  Joint ventures such as this bring lots of opportunities to the UK, particularly to Yorkshire and Humber.  Enterprise Europe Yorkshire, in conjunction with Renewables Network, has supported and promoted the renewable opportunities, within the region, promoting its expertise throughout Europe and it’s fantastic to see tangible results.”

The EU Industrial R&D Investment Scoreboard is a report published annually by the European Commission and provides information on the world’s top 1400 companies ranked by their investments in R&D.  It measures the total value of their global R&D investment, irrespective of the location where the relevant R&D takes place. 

According to the 2011 report, there was a general positive trend in 2010, as global R&D investment increased by 4%.  The global top 50 in terms of total R&D investment includes 15 EU companies, 18 US firms and 13 from Japan.  Two pharmaceutical companies occupied the top spots:  Roche from Switzerland followed by Pfizer from the US.  Volkswagen, in sixth place, is the biggest EU investor in R&D, followed by Nokia (11th place), Daimler (13th place) and Sanofi-Aventis (14th place).

US companies did even better than the EU in 2010, with R&D investment increasing by 10%.  Companies from some Asian countries continued to show very strong growth in R&D investment levels, including 29.5% for Chinese companies and 20.5% for those from South Korea. 

The 1400 companies in the Scoreboard employed more than 40 million people in 2010, a 3% increase over 2009.  An analysis of the past eight years’ trends shows that employment growth in R&D-intensive sectors is generally higher than in other sectors and less affected by the economic downturn.  More than two thirds of R&D investment of EU Scoreboard companies is from those located in the biggest Member States, with German companies showing the highest growth.  This is mostly due to a few automotive companies.  UK companies R&D investment growth was 5.8%, close to the EU average, compared to 3.8% for French companies.

For more information and the top 50 companies in full see FAQs.

Nanomaterials are already being used in hundreds of applications and consumer products ranging from toothpaste to batteries, paints and clothing.  Developing these innovative substances is seen as an important driver for European competitiveness, and has significant potential for progress in areas like medicine, environmental protection and energy efficiency. 

However, as uncertainties remain about the risks they pose a clear definition is needed to ensure that the appropriate chemical safety rules apply.  The definition should help all stakeholders including industry associations, as it brings coherence to the variety of definitions that are currently in use in different sectors.

Nanomaterials have been governed by a variety of legislative instruments at EU and national level.  However, definitions have been developed on a case by case basis and vary across sectors, creating unnecessary burdens for industry and hampering public debate about risks and benefits of these substances.  The recent recommendation gives EU legislators a legal reference for nanomaterials when adopting new or implementing existing legislation. 

The definition now adopted is based on an approach considering the size of the constituent particles of a material, rather than hazard or risk.  The wording describes a nanomaterial as ‘a natural, incidental or manufactured material containing particles in an unbound state, or as an aggregate, or as an agglomerate where 50% or more of the particles in the number size distribution, one or more external dimensions is in the size range 1 nm – 100 nm’.  The definition will be reviewed in 2014 in the light of technical and scientific progress.

For more information see Questions and answers on the Commission Recommendation on the definition of nanomaterial.

Some of the innovative projects selected cover a wide range of topics including the following research on:

• needle free injections of vaccines and drugs for both humans and animals to reduce consumables and infection risks
• safer mobile communications for consumers
• responses to consumers' concerns on health and food safety*
• controlling electronic devices like wheelchairs simply by sniffing
• safer, greener and more efficient photonic devices such as LEDs (used in traffic lights for instance), solar cells (energy storage) or CFLs (home illumination)

*The project on the impact of social anxieties about food on policies and businesses will test the market for new ideas with a view to providing consultancy services to various groups (manufacturers, retailers, food service organisations and agencies) so that they are better equipped to interpret and respond to consumers' concerns about health and food safety when developing new products.

The success rate is around 40%.  A total of 78 proposals were submitted in June to the first deadline of this call. The second deadline is on 8 November 2011. For more information, please click here. 

It is believed by the Commission that some barriers to cross-border trade result from divergent sales laws between the 27 Member States.  This can make selling abroad costly and complicated, especially for small firms.  Traders who are dissuaded from cross-border transactions due to contract law obstacles forgo at least €26 billion in intra-EU trade every year. 

If traders were to offer their products on the basis of the Common European Sales Law, consumers would have the option of choosing a user-friendly European contract with a high level of protection with just one click of a mouse.

The potential advantages of the proposed law for businesses are seen to be:

• Providing one common (yet optional) regime of contract law that is identical for all 27 Member States so that traders no longer need to deal with the uncertainties that arise from having to cope with multiple national contract systems.
• Cutting transaction costs for businesses that wish to trade cross-border.  Currently, businesses have to adapt to 26 different national contract laws, translate them and hire lawyers, costing an average  €10 000 for each additional export market.
• Helping SMEs to expand into new markets – currently only 9.3.% of all EU companies sell across EU borders.

The potential advantages of the proposed law for consumers are seen to be:

• Providing the same level of consumer protection in all Member States.  The law would offer a free choice of remedies in case they buy a defective product, even several months after the purchase.
• Providing a wider choice of products at lower prices – currently consumers who search for better deals across the EU, particularly online, are often refused sale or delivery by the trader.
• Providing certainty about their rights in cross-border transactions – 44% of consumers say that uncertainty about their rights discourages them from buying from other EU countries.
• Increasing transparency and consumers’ confidence.  Consumers will be clearly informed, and will have to agree to use a contract based on the Common European Sales Law.  In addition, an information notice will clearly lay out the consumers’ rights in their own language.

The Common European Sales Law would be applicable:

•  Only if both parties voluntarily and expressly agree to it.
• To cross-border contracts where most of the problems of additional transaction costs and legal complexity arise.  Member States will have the choice to make the Common law applicable to domestic contracts as well.
• For both business-to-consumer and business-to-business transactions.
• If one party is established in a Member State of the EU.  Traders could use the same set of contract terms when dealing with other traders from within and from outside the EU.

The Commission’s proposal now needs approval from the EU Member States and the European Parliament.  For more information see FAQs – an optional Common European Sales Law.

There are several hundreds of companies involved in wholesale electricity and gas trade in Europe and up to 10,000 transactions take place every day.  Market prices are highly sensitive to the availability of production and transmission capacities.  For this reason prices can be influenced easily by creating a false impression about the availability of capacities or by reducing actual production.  Europe’s wholesale energy markets are also increasingly cross-border in nature.  As until now regulators in Member States have not had access to all the data on cross-border transactions, it has been difficult to understand what has been going on in these markets and effectively detect abuse.  The new regulation aims to put an end to this situation.  It will apply to all wholesale electricity and gas trades in the EU, including contracts for the transportation of these goods to customers.

For more information see Regulation on energy market integrity and transparency.

Overall, climate change was seen as the second most serious problem facing the world, after poverty, hunger and lack of drinking water (considered as a single issue).  One in five people surveyed considered climate change the single most serious problem. 51% (up from 47% in 2009) said it was either the most or one of the most serious problems, compared with 45% who said this about the economic situation.

Tackling climate change is also seen as the responsibility mainly of national governments, the EU and business. Only 21% considered they had a personal responsibility, but a further 23% suggested that all actors, including themselves, shared a collective responsibility. 78% agreed that fighting climate change and improving energy efficiency can boost the EU economy and jobs - up from 2009 when 63% agreed that climate action could boost economy and jobs. In no Member State did fewer than two in three support this view.

The public expects Europe to become a climate-friendly society by 2050, a vision the Commission outlined earlier this year in its ‘Roadmap to a competitive low-carbon economy’ (read more about this).  Almost nine out of 10 (88%) expect that in 2050 Europe will use more renewable energy, 87% that Europe will be more energy-efficient and 73% that cars will be powered more efficiently than today.

Click here to view the full report.

The 305 online purchases made by the mystery shoppers were then returned in line with the ‘cooling off’ rules, which allow online shoppers to send the product back without giving any particular reason and get a full refund.  The key findings are as follows:

• Delivery – 94% of the products were delivered, up from 66% in 2003.  This confirms that delivery for cross-border purchases within the EU is as reliable as for domestic ones, or even more.

• Products – only 1% of products were faulty (e.g. a book with a damaged cover) or different from what was ordered (e.g. wrong colour).

• Returning product and reimbursements – when shoppers returned the products under the ‘cooling-off’ rules, the product cost was reimbursed in 90% of cases.  However, 57% of shoppers had problems getting reimbursed for the original delivery costs, as required under EU rules.  The EU rules state that consumers can cancel an online order for any reason within at least 7 days from receiving it and send it back to the seller, though they may have to pay the cost of shipping the product back.

• Website friendliness to cross-border sales – the foreign websites were originally pre-selected based on a set of minimum criteria for ‘cross-border friendliness’.  But, in practice 60% of these sites presented difficulties which made them unsuitable for online shoppers from other countries e.g. because the delivery to the consumer’s country was not possible.

At the end of 2011, the Commission will present a study on the savings potential of e-commerce for consumers.  This will feed into an action plan entirely devoted to the development of e-commerce in the Single Market and to removing existing barriers.  As part of the plan, the Commission wants to table a legislative proposal which will allow consumers shopping online from an EU country to solve their disputes with traders based in another EU country entirely online, as an alternative to going to court.  This is expected before the end of 2011. 

In 2010, the highest percentages of unsuccessful applications were found in Bulgaria (36%), Ireland (27%), Latvia (26%), the Netherlands (23%), Lithuania and the UK (both 21%).  The lowest were in Finland (0.2%), Malta (2%), Cyprus and Poland (both 4%) and Italy (5%).

Excluding unsuccessful requests, applications can be split between those which are fully successful and those which are partially successful, granted under less favourable conditions than originally requested.  The percentage of successful loan applications by SMEs was lower in 2010 than in 2007 in all Member States for which data are available, and the proportion of only partially successful loan applications increased in all Member States.

The city's entrepreneurs and SMEs have reaped the benefits, having had the opportunity to rub shoulders with global experts, government ministers, TV stars and like minded individuals - all looking to network, learn and grow.

Numbers were up 100% on last year and most of the events were a complete sell out, showing a growing appetite for MADE: The Entrepreneur Festival in years to come.

Tim Barraclough of Enterprise Europe Network in Yorkshire along side other entrepreneurs and blue chip organisations such as Siemens successfully participated in the Accelerate@ MADE panel session. The session was very well received undoutably contributing to the MADE: Festival's success.

The EU co-ordinated a ‘Sweep’ investigation, was launched in September 2010, where enforcement authorities across the EU, Norway and Iceland checked websites selling tickets for cultural and sporting events for compliance with EU consumer law.  414 sites were checked and then national authorities followed up on the problematic sites, requesting corrections and imposing sanctions if necessary.  The main problems identified included:  incomplete or misleading information about prices; unfair terms and conditions; incomplete or misleading information about the trader.  Of the 414 sites originally checked, 88% now comply with EU-wide consumer rules, compared with only 40% in 2010.  National authorities will continue to work on the outstanding cases.  A new sweep and more joint actions are currently being planned to take place during 2012.

For more information see FAQs on Ticketing Sweep.

However, it was a Yorkshire-Danish joint-venture in offshore wind that took the crown at the award ceremony during the Annual Conference of the Enterprise Europe Network in Warsaw, Poland. Members from the 600+ offices in 49 countries of the Enterprise Europe Network took part in the voting and chose the story about how Grimsby-based COSALT came to launch a joint venture with Danish engineering company APRO as the most inspiring success story.  

The Joint-Venture, COSALT Wind Energy Lt, created 30 jobs in the UK and Denmark and landed their first major contract with Siemens involving the supply of engineers to their offshore wind operations around the UK coast and is set to grow further in 2012.

The Enterprise Europe Network in Yorkshire has been working closely with the offshore wind sector since 2009, helping local Yorkshire and Humber companies connect with European counterparts. A lot of effort has gone into this with the Network organising company missions, seminars and one-to-one company introductions. Tim Barraclough “It feels good to see that our efforts at the Enterprise Europe Network in Yorkshire have been recognized and validated by our peers”

You can read the success story here.

Measures set out in the Roadmap aim at transforming production and consumption, with incentives for investors to promote green innovation, a greater role for eco-design, eco-labelling and greener spending by public bodies.  Governments are invited to shift taxation away from labour towards pollution and resources, and to provide fresh incentives to push consumers towards resource-efficient products.  The Roadmap also recommends adapting prices to reflect the real costs of resource use, especially on environment and health.  It focuses on addressing resource efficiency in the sectors that are responsible for the greatest share of environmental impacts – namely food, buildings and mobility.

The Roadmap will employ various methods including legislation, market-based instruments, refocusing of funding instruments and promotion of sustainable production and consumption.  Clear targets and indicators providing predictability and transparency will be developed by 2013. 

For further information see Questions and Answers on Resource Efficiency Roadmap

Earlier in 2011, each EU country appointed an SME Envoy to promote the interests of small business and ensure that SME interests are not neglected.  There was consensus among SME Envoys and representatives of the small business community that action over the next 12 months needs to focus on three concrete areas:

• Simplifying the business environment and encouraging people to take up the challenge of becoming an entrepreneur.  The SME Envoys signed up to the target of making it possible in all Member States to start a business in 3 days at a cost of no more than €100.
• Improving SMEs’ access to finance through measures to increase the availability and use of bank loan guarantees for SMEs, together with micro-credit for start-ups and micro companies in particular.   In the current situation, access to finance appears to be the most pressing problem for SMEs.  Furthermore, the latest research shows that SMEs secure only 34% of public procurement advertised EU-wide despite their share of the wider economy being 52%.  It was agreed that it was necessary to increase SME participation in public procurement contracts.
• Ensuring systematically that new legislation will duly take into account the potential implications for SMEs by means of any SME Test, at both European and national level.  The SME Test was first laid down in the Small Business Act (SBA) for Europe adopted in 2008 and aims to ensure that no new obstacles arise that could hamper the smooth running of Europe’s 25 million small businesses.

For more information on the SME Test see 2011 Survey.

The Cosmetics Directive prohibits animal testing in the EU of finished cosmetic products since 2004 and animal testing of ingredients of cosmetic products has been prohibited since 2009.  A marketing ban is also in place which prohibits selling in the EU cosmetic products containing ingredients which have been tested on animals irrespective of the place of the testing after March 2009. 

For many of the tests needed to ensure the safety of cosmetic products, alternative methods have been  developed and validated.  However, work continues to close the remaining gap for the small number of the most complex effects on health for which the marketing ban deadline comes into force in March 2013.

The Commission’s report stresses the continued commitment to find alternative approaches but states that alternative methods for testing the remaining so-called complex "endpoints" will not be possible by the 2013 deadline.  The lack of full alternatives does not mean that the Commission will propose postponing the deadline.  Instead it is currently assessing the impact of the entry into force of the ban in 2013 without alternatives and will decide on next steps on the basis of the full impact assessment.

Validated alternative methods are available for the identification of corrosive substances, skin irritants and severe eye irritants, skin phototoxicity and skin penetration as well as to assess genotoxicity.  Significant advances have been made in reducing the number of animals used in tests, for example, in relation to acute toxicity. 

In relation to the complex endpoints of repeated-dose toxicity, reproductive toxicity and toxicokinetics understanding has improved significantly over the last decade.  Many alternative methods are under development and there is potential for partial replacement strategies.

The European Commission is currently assessing the impacts of the implementation of the full marketing ban by 2013 and on the basis of that assessment will decide whether or not to make a proposal in relation to it.  The Commission is expected to announce its final decision by the end of 2011.
 

The aim of the Directive is to bring performers’ protection more in line with that already given to authors – 70 years after their death. The extended term should enable them to earn money for a longer period of time and in any event throughout their lifetime.

The income from copyright remuneration is important for performers, as they often do not have other regular salaried income. The extended term should also benefit record producers who will generate additional revenue from the sale of records in shops and on the internet. In the view of the European Commission, this should allow them to adapt to the rapidly changing business environment and help them maintain their investment levels in new talent.

The Directive also contains accompanying measures which aim specifically to help performers. The “use it or lose it” clauses which will now have to be included in the contracts linking performers to their record companies will allow performers to get their rights back if the record producer does not market the sound recording during the extended period.

In this way the performer will be able to either find another record producer willing to sell his music or do it himself, something that is possible easily via the internet. Finally, record companies will have to set up a fund into which they will have to pay 20% of their revenues earned during the extended period. The money from this fund will be destined to help session musicians.

For more information on the new Directive, click here or contact the Enterprise Europe Network team on 0800 052 8156 or e-mail info@ee-yorkshire.com
 

Legionnaires’ disease is usually thought of as a public health issue rather than an occupational health matter, even though it often strikes workers in places at high risk of outbreak.  These include cooling towers, premises where mist machines are present, biological waste water treatment facilities, carwash plants, healthcare facilities, spas and hotels.

The new fact sheet summarises the occupational aspects of exposure to Legionella and  is based on an overview of European policies related to the disease, as well as case studies on how to control Legionella risks.

To download the fact sheet, please click here.  Alternatively, please contact the Enteprise Europe Network Yorkshire team for further information on 0800 052 8156, e-mail:  info@ee-yorkshire.com
 

Under the EU’s chemicals legislation, very dangerous chemicals – those which have potentially serious effects on human health or the environment – must be authorised for use.  In order to do this, proposals (or “dossiers”) must be submited to the ECHA and the Agency then invites comments on these proposals, for example on their hazardous properties and further information on the uses, exposures and availability of safer alternative substances or techniques.  
 

Nineteen substances are now being proposed as SHVCs because of their potentially serious effects on human health. They are classified as carcinogenic and/or toxic for reproduction. In addition, one substance is because of its endocrine disrupting properties and potential for serious effects to the environment.
 

A Committee made up of the Member States will review these comments and will try to reach an agreement on the identification of the proposed substances as SVHCs.  The ECHA will then include the agreed substances on the so-called Candidate List. 
 

There are already 53 substances on the Candidate List. Inclusion on the list imposes new information requirements on suppliers of preparations and articles containing the substances. Substances on the Candidate List may be selected for authorisation.
 

The detailed proposals are available on the ECHA website. Interested parties are invited to comment on the proposals by 13 October 2011.
 

According to an EU study, only 38% of bank cash machines (automated teller machines or ATMs) across the EU provide voice capabilities to customers with disabilities, far behind the US (61%) and Canada (nearly all ATMs).

The project, abbreviated “APSIS4All”, aims to design and validate personal interfaces, including ‘contactless’ cards, to help overcome existing accessibility barriers to public digital terminals (PDTs).  APSIS4All stands for Accessible Personalised Services In Public Digital Terminals for all. 

There are a number of technological solutions on the market to help facilitate the use of PDTs, such as keypads placed within reach of wheelchair users, braille labels on buttons or voice output via a speaker for the visually impaired.  As these functions have often been found not available or too complex to activate, there will be a focus on cutting edge technologies or short range wireless communication in the project.  Trials will be run for three years at cash dispensers in Spain from September 2011 and ticket vending machines in Germany from January 2012.

In the first phrase, the project is to collect 3000 users who will be testing different machines in order to adapt interfaces according to their needs and preferences.  For example, tests could involve a programmed card that contains the user’s preferences.  When the user brings the card close to the ATM, the machine instantly adapts to the user’s needs (perhaps changing the font size or choice of language). 

Other interfaces could include a mobile phone with accessibility features that enable a customer to purchase a ticket online and pay at the machine issuing the ticket using a secure code sent to their phone.

Encouraging further uptake of e-accessibility features by the ATM industry and service producers could help make PDTs more accessible to a wide range of users, from people who are not familiar with technology, people with reading difficulties, tourists who do not master the local language or even people who may have forgotten their reading glasses.

The European Commission is contributing €3.41 million, half of the overall budget to the project.  For more information see the APSIS4All website or click here to see who is involved in the project.

The figures are published in the Commission’s sixth EU Survey on R&D Investment Business Trends.  The survey results are based on 205 responses of mainly larger companies from the 1000 EU-based companies in the 2010 EU Industrial R&D Investment Scoreboard. 

Companies surveyed expect their R&D investment inside the EU to grow 3% a year over the next three years.  They expect to make the largest percentage increases in R&D investment in China (25%), Japan (17%), other European countries (8%), India (8%) and the US and Canada (5%).  The companies also revealed that an average of 27% of their annual sales comes from innovative products introduced in the past three years.

Top factors indicated as having a positive effect on innovation were the availability of qualified personnel and of public support such as grants and fiscal incentives.  Collaboration with other bodies, such as higher education institutions, was also seen as important.  Factors perceived as negative for all sectors were enforcement costs of Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) and the time needed to obtain IPR protection.

For the full report see 2010 Survey on R&D Investment Business Trends.

E-procurement is the use of electronic communications and transaction processing by governments and other public sector organisations when they are buying goods and services or tendering for construction contracts. 

Whilst public purchasers are increasingly replacing paper-based administrative procedures with electronic processes, the Commission believes that e-procurement  can both streamline public purchasing and deliver significant savings to European taxpayers.  It is therefore keen to boost take-up in the EU.

The measures the Commission has just announced include the setting up of an informal expert group on e-tendering that will be charged with developing a blueprint for common solutions for the electronic submission of tenders.  It is also commissioning some research to monitor the take-up of e-procurement and encourage the exchange of good practice between public organisations.  Further steps to encourage e-procurement will be included in proposals to revise the current EU procurement rules expected later this year. 

For more information, including details of the responses received by the Commission to a consultative Green Paper on the subject , click here or call the Enterprise Europe Network team on 0800 052 8156 (e-mail info@ee-yorkshire.com)
 

Creosote, a chemical known for its use on wooden railway sleepers, electricity poles and fencing, is a carcinogenic substance and has been banned for consumer use since 2003. 

The latest restrictions come in the form of an amendment to the European Directive on biocides.  From 2013, creosote may no longer be placed on the EU market unless a company receives an authorisation to do so.  

Studies have shown that in certain cases there are no appropriate alternatives to the chemical and for these clearly defined uses, Member States will be allowed to authorise its placing on the market.  Strict conditions will apply, including measures to protect workers from exposure during the treatment and handling of wood.  However, at the same time, industry is being actively encouraged to find viable, less environmentally damaging alternatives.

To find out more about the biocides legislation and the latest rules on creosote, please click here or contact the Enterprise Europe Network team on 0800 052 8156, e-mail: info@ee-yorkshire.com
 

The Commission estimates that currently around 1 million small businesses face problems with debts in other countries and that up to €600m of debt (c. £528m) is written off each year because firms find it too daunting to pursue expensive and confusing lawsuits in foreign countries.  On average companies lose around 2.6% of their turnover a year to bad debts. 

To try to help address this problem, the Commission is proposing to establish a new European Account Preservation Order that would allow creditors to preserve the amount owed in the debtor’s bank account.  This order could be very important in debt recovery proceedings, because it would prevent debtors from removing or scattering their assets during the time it takes to obtain and enforce a judgement on the merits of the case.

The new European Order would allow creditors to preserve funds in bank accounts under the same conditions in all Member States of the EU.  Any national systems for preserving funds would continue to exist, but the new proposal would give creditors the option to choose a European Procedure which they could chose to use to recover debts in other EU countries.

The new Order would be made in an “ex parte” procedure.  This means that it would be issued without the debtor knowing about it, thus allowing for a surprise effect.  The procedure is an interim protection measure:   the creditor will have to obtain a final judgement on their case actually to get hold of the money.

For more information on the proposal, which will now pass to the European Parliament and the Member States for consideration and adoption, please see European Preservation Order or contact the Enterprise Europe Network team on 0800 052 8156.
 

The new law improves the safety of electronic products such as thermostats, medical devices and control panels, preventing the release of hazardous substances into the environment. 

The new law is a revision of the "RoHS I"  Directive (Restriction of the use of certain Hazardous Substances in Electrical and Electronic Equipment) which sets strict limit values for lead, mercury, cadmium, hexavalent chromium, polybrominated biphenyls or polybrominated dipheynl ethers in specified types of electrical and electronic equipment (EEE).  The new law extends the scope of the EEE covered to all electronic equipment, including cables and spare parts.

The European Commission believes that the old legislation has prevented thousand of tonnes of banned substances from being disposed of and potentially released into the environment.  It also led to important changes in product design in the European Union and worldwide.  Under the new law, exemptions can still be granted in cases where no satisfactory alternatives for substances are available.

In view of the significant extension of the scope, the new Directive introduces transition periods of up to 8 years for the new products affected by the rules.  Photovoltaic panels are exempted from the new Directive in an effort to help the EU reach its objectives for renewable energy and energy efficiency.  Member States have 18 months to implement the new rules from the date of entry into force, 21 July 2011.  Meanwhile, the old Directive continues to apply.

The Commission is striving to ensure a smooth transition between the ‘old’ and ‘new’ RoHS Directive.  To facilitate compliance for manufacturers, the RoHS Frequently Asked Questions guidance will be updated before the deadline for implementation in Member States.  The Commission will also review articles covered by the change in scope between the old and new Directive, which have not yet been subject to an impact assessment , with a view to their inclusion in the Directive.

Some other key elements of the new Directive are as follows:

-  A review of the list of banned substances by July 2014, and periodically thereafter

- Clearer rules for granting exemptions from the substance ban

- Improved coherence with the REACH Regulation on the Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation, and Restriction of Chemicals

- Clarification of important definitions

- CE marking indicating compliance with European norms reserved for electronic products that also respect RoHS requirements.

More information can be accessed here or by contacting Enterprise Europe on 0800 052 8156.

The new Directive addresses a wide range of issues to ensure that toys do not present any health hazards or risk of injury.  Rules preventing children from choking or suffocating as a consequence of swallowing or inhaling toys or their parts have been strengthened.  For example, toys in or co-mingled with food always need to be in separate packaging, and those that can be accessed only after the food surrounding them is actually consumed are prohibited.

Member States will have to ensure that market surveillance authorities perform adequate checks at the EU external borders and within the Union to ensure the confiscation of dangerous toys.  Visits at the premises of businesses are also to be done as a spot check.

Before placing a new toy on the EU market, toy manufacturers, importers and distributors will need to identify the hazards and the potential exposure to children via a safety assessment.  Manufacturers are also obliged to ensure traceability of the toy by indicating name, address, and number of the item.

Some examples of the most serious risks that have been identified for the safety and health of children so far include:

• Parts or fragments of toys that can be swallowed with the risk of asphyxiation; among which puppets or cards mixed in food without an appropriate protective wrapper;

• Baby-changing tables or highchairs that are not stable enough and may therefore trap the child;

• Phthalates, chemical substances which make plastic softer, used in toys or baby’s bottles, which may seriously damage kidneys and liver;

• Counterfeit puppets and dolls which are extremely inflammable as processed with non conforming varnishes;

• Flame retardant chemicals found in some toys causing alterations in the nervous system, possible negative effects on growth, and permanent endocrine system damages.

The EU Commission has prepared a guide with recommendations for consumers on how to protect their children from toy-related risks.  Please contact Enterprise Europe Yorkshire if you would like more information.

Six million European trucks and buses are equipped with tachographs in order to enable the control of compliance of professional drivers and transport undertakings with the social road transport legislation - in particular the legislation on driving times and resting times.  The digital tachograph was made mandatory for new vehicles in 2006.  The latest proposal aims to update the legal framework, and help to reduce fraud and cut the administrative burden related to the tachograph’s use.

Features of the proposal include:

• location recording by satellite positioning system to allow replacement of manual recording with an automated one.  This is estimated to save €349 million (or £307 million approximately) per year for road transport businesses and their drivers.  It would allow for better monitoring and provide important information for organising the logistics chain.

• remote communication that increases efficiency of roadside checks that can be targeted on those vehicles which are more likely to be in breach of the legislation.

• specific interface to allow for an integration into intelligent transport systems, while respecting the applicable legislation on data protection.

• higher standards for workshops entrusted to install and calibrate the tachograph aims to reduce fraud and manipulation

• merging the driving licence with the driver card to be used with the digital tachograph.  This would reduce the administrative burden on drivers by an estimated €100 million (or £87 million approximately) per year.  It should also reduce fraudulent use of driver cards.

The proposal would also allow Member States to grant exceptions from the obligation to use tachographs for certain users within a uniformly extended radius.

For more information see Tachograph

EU Customs enforcement continues to monitor products suspected of violating intellectual property rights (IPR) at the EU’s external borders.  The number of shipments stopped by customs almost doubled compared, rising from 43,500 in 2009 to almost 80,000 in 2010.  One trend has been the growing number of detentions of postal packages.

Cigarettes, office supplies, other tobacco products, labels, tags, emblems, clothing and toys were among the top categories of articles stopped.  14.5% of all detained articles were household products such as shampoos, soaps, medicines or household appliances (hair dryers, shavers, computer parts) which could potentially have health and safety implications for consumers.

China continued to be the main source of the IPR infringing products, totalling 85% of the total.  Other countries such as Turkey, Thailand, Hong Kong or India accounted for the majority in certain product categories such as foodstuffs, beverages including alcoholic ones, memory cards and medicines respectively.  90% of all detained products were either destroyed or a court case was initiated to determine the infringement.

The Commission has produced a manual for IPR right holders, to help them to lodge and process applications for customs to take action where they suspect their rights have been violated.  It remains in close contact with the private sector to see where further improvements in controls could be made.

The protection of IPR is a key principle of the EU economy and is seen by the Commission as a key driver for  growth in areas such as innovation and employment.  Effective IPR is also essential as certain counterfeited products (such as foodstuffs, body care articles and children’s items) when produced in an unregulated environment can pose serious risks to the health and safety of European citizens.

Access to the full report can be gained here.  To watch the Commission’s video download on the Customs Annual Report click here.  Please contact Enterprise Europe Yorkshire if you have any questions. 

One in four respondents considered that their internet download / upload speeds do not match the conditions of the contract they signed and one in three said they have experienced connection breakdowns.  New EU legislation applicable from 25 May 2011 requires service providers to give customers comprehensive and accurate information in advance – before they sign a contract – on minimum service quality levels including actual connections speeds and possible limits on internet speeds.  The Commission is currently investigating broadband speeds and other transparency and quality of service issues.

The survey also found that EU citizens are concerned about data privacy – 88% of respondents said they would like to be informed if their personal data collected by the telecom provider was lost, stolen or altered in any way.  Under new EU rules, telecoms operators and internet service providers must take strong security measures to protect the names, email addresses and bank account information of their customers, along with data about every phone call and internet session they engage in.  The new rules also require operators, if security is breached and / or personal data is lost or stolen, to inform the data protection authorities and their customers without undue delay.

The full survey can be found at:  eCommunications Household Survey

The Regulation on Food for Consumers provides new rules on the legibility of information that appears on food labelling, as well as providing general principles on food labelling.  It will hopefully help to prevent misleading practices and offer better health protection for consumers.  

Information about certain substances that cause allergies or intolerances, such as peanuts or milk, will have to be provided on both packaged and non-prepacked foods, including those sold in restaurants and cafes.  Major allergens will be highlighted in the list of ingredients on prepacked foods.  Engineered nanomaterials will also need to be indicated in the list of ingredients.  

There will also be new requirements to provide information on the nutrient content of most processed foods.  For example, important nutritional characteristics foods such as energy, fat, saturated fat, carbohydrates, sugars, protein and salt will need to be given.

For prepacked meat from pigs, sheep, goats and poultry, information on where it comes from will need to be given.  The new rules maintain that for foods in general, as in the current approach, the country of origin labelling on food is voluntary unless its absence could mislead consumers. 

This labelling is to apply after the adoption of implementing rules that will determine the way to express the information, including whether origin should be expressed as Member State or EU and on which point(s) of the life of the animal (place of birth, place of rearing, place of slaughtering).  The Commission expects to develop specific rules on the mandatory labelling of the origin of meat and aims to clarify how the new rules on the voluntary labelling will apply within the next two years.      

Under the new law, food businesses will need to provide consumers wishing to buy their foods via the internet with all the mandatory information that appears on the label before the purchase is made.  This requirement takes full account of all ways of supplying food to consumers and applies to distance selling (webpage or catalogue) or other appropriate means.

A minimum font size for mandatory information is to be used so that consumers can easily read the food labels without having to use a magnifying glass.  Voluntary information (e.g. slogans or claims) must not be presented in a way that adversely affects the presentation of the mandatory information.  More rules on legibility are also to be established in the future.

As counterfeiting of food and beverages is a major concern, the new rules ensure that when a food is not exactly as it appears to be, relevant information will be provided to prevent consumers from being misled by a certain presentation or appearance.  Counterfeiting can take various forms.  For example by diluting authentic products, substitution of inferior ingredients or implying a false origin of product.   When some ingredients, normally expected to be in the food, have been replaced by others, the substitute ingredients will be labelled with prominence on the package and not only in the list of ingredients.  Prominent information must also be given on the presence of added water or any added proteins of different animal origin in meat and fishery products.  In addition, such foods when they give the impression that they are made of a whole piece of meat or fish, though they consist of different pieces combined together, will be labelled as "formed meat" or "formed fish."  

Alcoholic beverages are only provisionally exempt from the requirements to provide an ingredient list and nutrition information.  However, within three years after the entry into force of the new rules, the Commission is expecting to study this issue  specifically  and, if necessary, propose amendments to the rules.

The new labelling requirements apply after the formal adoption of the legislation but the obligation to include nutrition information will not apply until five years after adoption.  However, where it is given,  the nutritional labelling will need to be presented in accordance with the new rules within three years.

The proposed Regulation would, for the first time, introduce structural measures to boost competition by allowing customers from 1 July 2014, if they so wish, to sign up for a cheaper mobile roaming contract , separate from their contract for national mobile services, whilst using the same phone number.  The proposal would also give mobile operators (including so-called virtual operators) the right to use other operators’ networks in other Member States at regulated wholesale prices to encourage more operators to compete on the roaming market.

To cover the period until structural measures become fully effective and competition drives retail prices down, the proposal would progressively lower current retail price caps on voice and texting (SMS) services and introduce a new retail price cap for mobile data services.  The latter should ensure that users of smart phones, tablets and other devices to access the Internet through mobile networks could go online whilst abroad without running up huge bills.  The current Regulation does not foresee retail price caps for data roaming.  Wholesale price caps for data roaming have been in place since July 2009, but savings have not been passed on to the consumer.

In terms of increasing competition, the proposal should make it easier for alternative operators, like virtual network operators, to enter roaming markets by requiring network operators in other Member States to give them access to their networks at regulated wholesale prices.  This should create more competition between operators on roaming markets, and so increase the incentives for them to offer customers more attractive price and services. 

Consumers could also choose an alternative provider for roaming services, irrespective of their national provider.  Each time a consumer crossed a border, they would automatically switch to their chosen roaming provider, without any further action on their part, while keeping the same number and SIM card.

For more information see FAQs.

Steviol glycoside is extracted from Stevia rebaudiana, a plant originating from Paraguay.  The extracts have up to 300 times the sweetness of sugar and can be therefore used as natural sweeteners for the production of low-calorie drinks. 

The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) evaluated the safety of steviol glycosides and published its opinion in March 2010.  EFSA concluded that steviol glycoside is not carcinogenic, genotoxic or associated with any reproductive or developmental toxicity.  However, conservative estimates of steviol glycoside exposure in adults and children suggested that, when the sweetener would be used in all the foodstuffs at the levels requested by the applicants, it is likely that the Acceptable Daily Intake (ADI) of four milligrams per kilogram of bodyweight could be exceeded at the maximum proposed use levels.  The ADI is the level below which the exposure is safe. 

The Commission has therefore proposed reduced levels, taking into consideration both the safety of the consumer and the need for new energy-reduced products that would be beneficial from a heath perspective and would stimulate innovation.  The proposed levels will allow a significant replacement of sugar in foodstuffs with steviol glycoside.  At the same time the endorsed proposal reassures that the EFSA-established ADI will not be exceeded.

From 1st July 2011 the cap for data roaming wholesale prices (the price which operators charge each other) will also fall to 50 cents (approximately 45 pence) per MegaByte (down from 80 cents per MB, approximately 72 pence).  The current Regulation does not establish a retail price cap for data services.  However consumers and business travellers will continue to be protected from unexpected "bill shocks" for downloading data over mobile networks as monthly bills for data downloading are limited to €50 unless the customer explicitly agrees otherwise.

Member States' national telecoms regulators must ensure that mobile phone operators comply with the new rules on data roaming and the lower prices of voice calls.  Consumers can contact the national regulator in the Member State where their mobile operator is based if they have any problems or questions about the new limits.

While price cuts temporarily reduce roaming prices during the regulated period, the current rules do not solve the underlying problem of lack of competition in roaming services, and prices remain close to the retail caps.  The Commission believes that this creates the need for a new regulatory intervention with a view to meeting the target set in the Digital Agenda for Europe: that the difference between roaming and national telecoms tariffs should approach zero by 2015. 

This target is expected be met if competition in mobile markets give consumers a rapid and easy choice of roaming service at, or close to, a relevant competitive domestic price level.  For this purpose, the Commission will be presenting very shortly a proposal for a long-term solution to the structural problems in the markets for voice, text and data roaming.

For more information on roaming, click here.  See here for more information on the Digital Agenda for Europe. 
 

The deal is unprecedented in terms of the scope and speed of tariff liberalisation and breaks new ground in tackling significant non-tariff barriers across all sectors, including automotive, pharmaceutical and consumer electronics.

South Korea and the EU are expected to eliminate 98.7% of duties in trade value within 5 years from the entry into force of the FTA.  By the end of the transitional periods, import tariffs will be eliminated on all industrial products, and most agricultural products, with a few exceptions, such as rice.

Slashed import duties as a result of the FTA are estimated to save European exporters €850 million (£766 million approximately) in the first year alone.  One study estimates that the deal will more than double the bilateral EU-South Korea trade in the next 20 years, compared to a scenario without the FTA.  Another study projects that EU exports will go up by €19 billion thanks to the FTA.

The FTA will also create new market access in services and investment, and is expected to make major advances in areas such as intellectual property, procurement, competition policy and trade and sustainable development.

In addition, the EU-South Korea FTA ensures fast tariff dismantlement for environmentally friendly goods in order to promote sustainable development through green technologies.  Within 3 years from its entry into force almost 100% of such goods are to have duty free access to South Korea's and the EU's markets.

 Click here to read more about the 10 suggested key benefits of the agreement.  More information on the agreement can also be found here or via the EU-South Korea Trade portal. 
 

Three names were shortlisted.  Horizon 2020 received 3,055 votes against 2,785 for Imagine 2020 and 2,478 for Discover 2020.  The full name for the legislative proposal  which will be put forward for the new programme will be ‘Horizon 2020 – the Framework Programme for Research and Innovation’.  The competition winners were a teacher from the Czech Republic, and a teacher from Poland, who both suggested the name.

The European Commission intends that the future Framework Programme will not just have a new name, but will also comprise a new, integrated funding system that will cover all research and innovation funding currently provided through the Framework Programme for Research and Technical Development (FP7), the Competitiveness and Innovation Framework Programme (CIP) and the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT). 

The aim is to bring these different types of funding together in a coherent and flexible manner.  It is hoped that this will be a smarter way to support researchers and innovators in Europe, so as to further boost excellence and to help ensure that good ideas reach the market and generate sustainable economic growth and new jobs.  Research and innovation funding should focus more clearly on addressing global challenges, and needless red tape should be cut out and participation made simpler.
 

The proposal repeals the Dietetic Foods Directive and abolishes the concept of dietetic foods because its application differs significantly between Member States and creates distortions in the internal market.  Dietetic foods would be solely covered by other already existing legislation such as that, for instance, on nutrition and health claims and/or the regulation on the addition of vitamins, minerals and other substances to foods.

Dietetic foods are especially manufactured products intended to satisfy the particular nutritional requirements of specific groups of the population, such as foods for infants and children up to three years old, for people intolerant to gluten, meal replacement foods for weight control, foods intended for athletes etc.  However, the concept of dietetic foods no longer corresponds with the reality of today’s food market.  A large number of food products now target certain groups of the population with alleged specific nutritional needs e.g. fortified cereals for growing children.  Consequently, the Commission believes the difference between ‘dietetic’ foods for specific groups of people and ‘specialised foods’ for the general population or sub-groups is no longer clear and useful.

The draft regulation will, however, strengthen and clarify provision for food intended for vulnerable groups of the population who need particular protection – namely infants and children up to three years old, and people with specific medical conditions such as cancer patients or individuals with metabolism disorders.    It does so by maintaining the existing compositional and labelling rules applicable to infant and follow-on formulae, processed cereal-based foods and other baby foods and foods for special medical purposes.  The proposal also establishes a single EU list of substances, instead of the existing three, that can be added to these foods e.g. vitamins and minerals.

No products would have to be withdrawn from the market as a result of the new rules.  Those currently covered by the dietetic foods legislation would remain on the market but would be legislated fully by the other pieces of existing food legislation. Some re-labelling may be necessary but in order to reduce possible costs for operators, a two-year transition period is foreseen.

It is hoped that having no general rules on dietetic foods and clearer rules for foods for specific groups of the population will provide clarity and legal certainty.  Having food products covered by the same rules in the EU should ensure the same level of consumer protection in all Member States and allow consumers to compare food products more easily.  The reduction in legal confusion should also facilitate market access for SMEs and support innovation.

The proposal will be discussed by the European Parliament and the Council.  The new rules could be adopted by the end of 2012.
 

Firstly, the proposed directive aims to increase competition in the rail market through more transparent market access conditions and providing easier access, for example by requiring improved access to rail-related services such as maintenance facilities, terminals, passenger information and existing ticketing facilities for freight and passenger trains.  

Secondly, proposals include extending the competence of national regulators to rail-related services.  This would require the independence of national rail regulators from any public authority.  It would strengthen regulatory supervision, establishing the obligation on these bodies to cooperate with their counterparts on cross-border issues. 

Thirdly, the proposed new rules on infrastructure financing and charging aim to develop a harmonised 'financial architecture' to encourage investment.  Measures include requiring national long-term strategies and multi-annual arrangements between the state and infrastructure managers (linking funding to performance, and business plans).  More precise and smarter infrastructure charging rules would also be introduced.  The new charging rules, with the introduction of noise-related modulation, should lead to lower track access charges for rail transport operators in many EU States, and stimulate private investments in greener and interoperable technologies.

The proposal is expected to be voted on by the European Parliament in early autumn.  The final text could be adopted in the first half of 2012.To read more see ‘Opening markets Europe-wide’.
 

These rules are to protect workers like doctors and nurses giving patients magnetic resonance imaging scans (MRI), people working with radar, and welders and workers repairing power lines.  The proposal to replace the current rules takes on board new scientific evidence to update the current exposure limits, particularly those of MRI in hospitals.  It only covers workers during their professional activities.

There are a number of provisions to help employers in their efforts to carry out risk assessments required by EU health and safety law.  The proposal introduces an updated system on exposure limits and those frequencies which are recognised as harmful to the human cardiovascular or central nervous system.   Employers would be required to ensure adequate preventative measures to reduce the exposure of workers to electromagnetic fields.

Under the proposed new rules, employers would be required to give exposed workers and their representatives the necessary information and training, particularly relating to the outcome of the risk assessment, measures to be taken by the employer, safe working practices, the detection of adverse effects and the circumstances in which workers are entitled to health checks.

In the case of a worker maintaining high tension lines for example, the employer would be required to evaluate the risks of exposure to electromagnetic fields and take measures to reduce them.  This could vary from increasing the distance, to reducing the intensity, limiting exposure time and so on.  For workers involved in MRI scans, the proposal would require appropriate good practices to be developed and disseminated to limit the exposure to those who carry out these procedures.  For workers in the armed forces, harmonised North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) norms for those working with radar would have to be applied in the Member States concerned.

The proposal would also foresee specific provisions for pregnant workers and those who wear an Active Implantable Medical Device (AIMD) such as a pacemaker.

The proposal will go to the European Parliament and the EU’s Council of Ministers for adoption.  If adopted, the new  Directive’s deadline for implementation will be set by these bodies.

For more background information see Health and safety at work – physical agents.
 

The chemicals are known officially as “substances of very high concern” (SVHCs) and include those which are known to cause cancer, mutations or problems with reproduction.  Currently there are 46 substances on the list, which is updated regularly.

The obligation to inform the ECHA is part of the EU’s chemicals legislation known as REACH and aims to ensure that industry, public authorities and consumers are better informed about the use of SVHCs in everyday objects.  Articles affected include clothes, toys, vehicles and electronic equipment. 

When new SVHCs are added to the list, companies will have six months to notify the newly-listed dangerous substances in their articles. Firms must also inform their customers if their product contains these substances in a concentration above 0.1% of its mass and provide sufficient information to customers to allow safe use of the article.

For more information on this subject, please click here or call the Enterprise Europe Network Yorkshire team on 0800 052 8156 or e-mail info@ee-yorkshire.com
 

The Commission believes that common standards are an important tool in ensuring Europe’s competitiveness but that, in the past, the process to develop them has been so long that they have lagged behind rapidly evolving technologies.

Standards are voluntary technical and quality criteria for products, services and production processes.  Companies are not obliged to use or apply them, but the Commission believes that common standards can have a number of positive effects for both businesses and consumers.

It cites, for example, the fact that consumers currently have to change chargers for their electronic devices, causing inconvenience and extra expense, and that mass use of electric cars will not happen without common standards for their recharge. 

The package of measures proposed by the Commission include enhanced cooperation with the leading standardisation bodies in Europe (CEN, CENELEC and ETSI) so that their standards will be available more quickly;  a push for more market-driven European standards for services; and a “light” and faster way to recognise the increasingly important standards developed by the global IT standards organisations.

Some of the actions proposed will be implemented immediately, whilst others will need the approval of the European Parliament and the EU Member States.

For more information on this subject, please click here or call the Enterprise Europe Network Yorkshire team on 0800 052 8156 or e-mail info@ee-yorkshire.com
 

MTL Group, the Rotherham-based project manufacturer, is to supply 97 boat landing systems to Aker Solutions, the Norwegian energy group, for Nordsee Ost, a German offshore wind farm.

It is MTL’s largest ever export order and came about after Hull-based THMA and Enterprise Europe Yorkshire attracted Windcluster Mid-Norway to the UK in the middle of last year.

The visit was co-ordinated by THMA’S project offce, and Tim Barraclough, Enterprise Europe Yorkshire consultant, and took in a number of Team Humber members, including MTL’s facilities. This showed MTL’s capabilities in specialist batch fabrications, with its ability to manufacture structures up to 400 tonnes in weight.

Darren Taylor, MTL business development manager, offshore and renewable energy, said: “The liaison work by Team Humber Marine Alliance was fundamental in us pursuing the opportunity we had identified with Aker in the North Sea. We needed a contact at Aker which coincided with the visit by Windcluster Mid-Norway who were able to give us the details and open the door to this fantastic new contract.”

MTL secured the deal to supply boat landing systems with Aker Solutions following meetings in the UK and Norway. Manufacture will take place at MTL’s state-of-the-art manufacturing facility in Rotherham and its dockside facility on the east coast.

Mark O’Reilly, director at Hull-based THMA, said: “The mission was an important opportunity to showcase to the Norwegians the collective capabilities of the Humber’s marine and renewable energy companies in a number of sectors, including defence, renewable energy and oil and gas.”

MTL Group, one of the fastest growing project manufacturing specialists in the metals sector, is the UK's leading secondary steelwork supplier of boat landing systems, and also supplies working platforms, plate beams and nodes.

The contract will use all of the company’s processing equipment, which includes large format hi-definition plasma and laser cutting, robotic tube cutting, automated robot welding and CNC machining.

Twenty-five MTL employees will work on the project at the group’s advanced manufacturing facility in Rotherham. Work has already commenced with the final delivery of boat landings expected by March 2012.

Team Humber Marine Alliance was formed in 1993 and now has more than 100 member companies serving five key industrial sectors: commercial shipping and inland waterways, nuclear energy, offshore oil and gas, renewable energy, and defence security.

It is seeking to increase its membership of marine and related engineering businesses. Interested companies should contact Mary Green at THMA on 01482 485271, admin@thma.co.uk

For more information, see: www.thma.co.uk
www.mtlgrp.com
www.akersolutions.com
www.windpower.org/en/
www.ee-yorkshire.com

For media information, please contact Catherine Ackroyd or Julian Woodford at Mapa on 01482 589900, 07739 139056, catherine@mapa.org.uk; julian@mapa.org.uk

The Small Business Act (SBA) is the European Commission’s SME policy aiming to make Europe more business friendly and encourage people to start their own businesses.  In the future the new SME envoys will meet with SME representative organisations at EU-wide level within the SBA Advisory Group.  This is part of the new governance called for in the recent review of the Small Business Act.  The new mechanism is intended to ensure closer monitoring and coordinated action in support of SMEs.  The SBA has already worked on cutting regulations, and has provided funding to more than 110,000 SMEs.  The newly appointed SME Envoys are expected to focus and accelerate actions at national level.

The European Commission has appointed Mr Daniel Calleja Crespo, Deputy Director-General at the European Commission’s Directorate General for Enterprise and Industry, as the new EU’s SME Envoy.  The SBA Review also called on countries to appoint an SME Envoy whose central role will be to ensure that the ‘Think Small First’ principle is applied at all levels of government, throughout the EU.  The SME Envoy in the UK is Mr Adam Jackson, Director of Enterprise at the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills.

For more information see Small Business Act .

The portal came about through the US-EU IPR Working Group which was established in 2004 to identify areas for joint action – particularly in third-country markets – where the United States and Europe share many of the same concerns regarding intellectual property rights protection.  It became clear that, while both parties had plenty of information on this issue, this was often difficult to find.  Through pooling resources and communicating information more clearly, SMEs on both sides of the Atlantic stood to benefit.

The IPR Portal is organised into six major sections, with the country toolkits section at its heart.  Here, visitors can click on a particular country via a dynamic map to find relevant information.  Visitors can also use the portal to learn the basics about intellectual property rights, manage their IPR correctly, learn about training opportunities, find the relevant enforcement authority and locate more experts who can advise on a particular issue.

To find out more see TransAtlantic IPR Portal.

 High levels of the harmful substance cadmium have been found in some jewellery articles, especially in imported imitation jewellery.  Consumers including children risked being exposed through skin contact or through licking.  The ban will be adopted as an amendment under the REACH (Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals) legislation.

The new legislation prohibits the use of cadmium in all types of jewellery products, except for antiques.  It also prohibits cadmium in all plastic products while encouraging the recovery of PVC waste for use in a number of construction products.  As PVC is a valuable material that can be recovered a number of times, the new legislation allows the re-use of recovered PVC containing low levels of cadmium in a limited number of construction products, without danger for the public or environment.  In order to fully inform buyers, construction products made of this recovered PVC will be marketed with a specific logo. 

Cadmium is also present in brazing sticks, which are used to join dissimilar materials, and is used for specific applications such as amateur modelling of stem train engines.  Fumes released during the brazing process are highly dangerous if inhaled.  The use of these brazing materials will be prohibited except for very specific professional uses.

Cadmium is a carcinogenic substance and is toxic for the aquatic environment.  It has been prohibited in the EU in a number of plastic articles since 1992, but was still allowed in some rigid PVC as at that time alternatives were not available on the market.  Since alternatives became available the European PVC industry decided to phase out cadmium from all PVC.  The use of cadmium in batteries and electronics has been restricted since 2004.

For more information on Reach and restrictions see FAQs.

3.    Intelligent Formulation Ltd: is a not for profit company set up by Yorkshire Chemical Focus Ltd, the Institute of Pharmaceutical Innovation and ParticlesCIC to deliver the new Formulation Innovation Network. If you are a company involved in formulation then the Formulation Innovation Network can provide business benefit by accelerating innovation and facilitating research and knowledge transfer across industry sectors to address future challenges and opportunities. The Formulation Innovation Network is supported by Yorkshire Forward, the European Regional Development Fund and Solutions for Business.

The funding is part of a €4m collaborative project lead by German technology leaders, SAP, that will focus on how improved data searching will impact on business.

Dubbed the ‘Semantic Web’ by father of the Internet, Sir Tim Berners-Lee, the next generation of the World Wide Web will allow users to search more data than ever before, return more relevant results and save users time surfing the web.

Currently only a proportion of data posted on the Internet can be ‘read’ intelligently by computers and users have to visit multiple websites to find the information that they want. 

The project will develop methodologies and a platform that combines essential features of semantic technologies and business intelligence.

The Communication and Computing Research Centre (CCRC) at Sheffield Hallam University (SHU) is committed to research in the areas of computing and communication.

Dr Simon Polovina, Senior Lecturer in Enterprise Computing, said:

“Semantic technology will be the next big breakthrough for the World Wide Web and will better enable computers and people to work in cooperation.

“This project, Combining and Uniting Business Intelligence with Semantic Technologies (CUBIST), will focus on creating new visual tools to help businesses make sense of the vast amounts of data that are out there.

“To be awarded funding to do this kind of work alongside a company like SAP is recognition of the truly leading edge research going on here in Sheffield.

“For organizations looking to access funding for innovation, Enterprise Europe Yorkshire is a great first port of call.”

Senior Lecturer in Software Engineering, Dr Simon Andrews, added:

“CUBIST will focus on an emerging semantic technology called Formal Concept Analysis and will help make sense of a variety of data sources which can be accessed through the web.

“Sheffield Hallam University has world leading expertise in this area, so the help from Enterprise Europe Yorkshire in securing the funding has given us an excellent opportunity to make a big impact with our research.”

CCRC approached Enterprise Europe Yorkshire – part of the world’s largest business support network - for assistance in evaluating their bid for funding as part of the ‘CUBIST Project’, led by German company, SAP.

Enterprise Europe Yorkshire advisor, Andy Taylor, added:

“Companies across Yorkshire are working on all kinds of innovative research and exciting new technology. If they get in touch with Enterprise Europe Yorkshire, we can help them access the €50bn ‘Framework Programme’ which funds collaborative research and development.”

“Bidding for funding at this level can be complicated and time consuming, but we can help and are here to make sure organisations in Yorkshire stay at the forefront of research in their sector.”

“The research will ensure Sheffield remains a leading centre of research into the impact of semantic technology on business intelligence.”

The 2010 contest began on 1 May, and closes on 31 July; competitors are invited to submit their ideas online at ESNC’s website. Twenty-one regions in Germany, France, Israel, Italy, Spain, Switzerland, Taiwan the UK, the USA, the Middle East and North Africa will offer prizes and support for winning ideas. 

For more information on the 2010 ESNC competition, visit http://www.galileo-masters.eu 

If the proposal is adopted, the leave entitlement would apply per parent, with at least 1 month being strictly non-transferable between parents.  The proposed Directive would give this right to parental leave to all employees, regardless of their type of contract including part-time, fixed-term and agency workers.  However, there is the possibility of requiring a qualification period of up to one year’s employment.

Workers returning after parental leave would also have the right to request changes to their working hours or patterns, which employers must consider and respond to.

The proposed Directive will now go to the European Parliament and EU ministers for their consideration.

• tighten up the way in which banks assess the risks connected with their trading book
• impose higher capital requirements for re-securitisations
• increase market confidence through stronger disclosure requirements for securitisation exposures
• require banks to have sound remuneration practices that do not encourage or reward excessive risk-taking

Under the new rules, banks would be restricted in their investments in highly complex re-securitisations if they couldn’t demonstrate that they fully understood the risks involved, while national supervisory authorities would review banks’ remuneration policies and have the power to impose sanctions if the policies did not meet the new requirements.  The proposal, which amends the existing Capital Requirements Directives, represents part of the EU’s response to the financial crisis and reflects consultation with Member States, banking supervisors and industry.  The purpose of the Capital Requirements Directives is to ensure the financial soundness of banks and investment firms.  Together they stipulate how much of their own financial resources they must have in order to cover their own risks and protect their depositors.  The proposal will now go to the European Parliament and Council of Ministers for consideration.