Small businesses ‘lacking EU support’

The EU needs to provide more tailored and joined up support for small and medium-sized enterprises to help them grow, a study has found.

A report published by the European Economic and Social Committee on 6 July found that EU support for SMEs is far from optimal. Despite “a great deal of work” having been done to establish support tools, platforms and networks, “major challenges” remain.

“The majority of EU support mechanisms seem unable to respond to SMEs’ pressing needs,” the report stated. “SMEs often feel that responsible officials are not always aware of how the business actually functions.”