News In Focus
18 August 2006
Small businesses challenge EU transport plan
The Federation of Small Businesses in Scotland has come out against a draft EU regulation on enhancing supply chain security against possible terrorist attack.
The European Commission proposes that member states create a "quality label" for freight transport by road, rail and inland waterway. To be granted the status of “secure operator” a business would have to prove that there are no security gaps in their operation.
The FSB claims that the regulation would affect goods being transported within Scotland as well as between countries and would hit small operators hard by requiring costly security audits. It estimates the cost to small and medium enterprises at up to £37 billion.
The EU's Council of Ministers is to discuss the regulation at a meeting on 4 September. The FSB, which wants the ministers to reject the plans, fears the regulation is being fast-tracked and risks being poorly implemented. A voluntary phase would run from this year before the measures become compulsory in 2008.
FSB officials have voiced fears that in the struggle to defeat terrorism there will be imposed "a heavy-handed and bureaucratic system that will put many people out of work without actually increasing security".
The regulation, says the Federation, will directly oppose one of the founding principles of the EU, the free movement of goods and people, "with no tangible benefit".