BCC: Single Market Act will help tear down barriers for trade across the EU

Commenting on the final version of the Single Market Act launched today by the European Commission, Dr Adam Marshall, Director of Policy at the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC), said:

“British business must be able to treat Europe as its home turf - and reap the benefits of a Single European Market of 500 million consumers.

“The 12 priority measures launched today by the European Commission go some way to achieving this.

“For example, proposals to make it simpler for skilled professionals to move across borders, to make it easier for businesses and public authorities to transact securely online, and to make it cheaper for innovative companies to obtain an EU patent, will help tear down barriers for companies trading all across the EU.

“The Single Market Act contains many of the right ingredients to enhance Europe’s competitiveness. However, we must now see political will and effort focused on measures that will give the private sector a major boost. European economies are still extremely fragile, meaning that we must see a clear and continued focus on growth and jobs both now and into the future.”

The full European Commission document is available here: http://ec.europa.eu/internal_market/smact/docs/20110413-communication_en.pdf