The Commission is proposing to modernise and simplify rules on out-of-court dispute resolution to adapt them to digital markets. This proposal will expand the range of issues that can be resolved through the Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) Directive out-of-court, including matters related to misleading advertising, access to services and unjustified geoblocking. To make this option more accessible to consumers, designated bodies such as the European Consumer Centres Network will assist consumers in understanding and accessing alternative dispute resolution procedures. The goal of the proposal is also to expedite the procedures. Improvements brought by the new rules: i) expanding the scope of the Directive; ii) incentivising the participation of businesses; iii) improving Consumer Assistance.
Secção do Mercado Único, Produção e Consumo (INT) - Related Opinions
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SMEs face major uncertainties, supply constraints, labour shortages and unfair competition.
The Commission is proposing new rules to create a legal form for European cross-border operations of non-profit associations, which will coexist with national non-profit associations. They will serve as a vehicle to facilitate the operations of associations with activities in more than one Member State. The new rules will eliminate legal and administrative obstacles, supporting the freedom of establishment, the free provision of services and goods, the freedom of capital and the mobility rights of non-profit associations. The proposal also encourages measures to ensure the interoperability of national registers with existing tools at EU level, such as the Single Digital Gateway, in order to allow automated access and exchange of data and/or use of agreed minimum standards to ensure comparability of data and the Internal Market Information System (IMI) to support administrative cooperation between competent authorities.
While European policies often aim to foster innovation, they sometimes inadvertently create obstacles for research and development (R&D) initiatives.
EU rules on late payments have triggered a reduction in payment delays. However, still more than 60% of businesses in the EU are not paid on time and small and medium-sized enterprises are most affected. The initiative will provide relief to SMEs by revising existing EU payment rules based on available and upcoming evidence to promote a definitive shift towards a culture of “prompt payment".
This initiative aims at providing detailed rules to support the smooth functioning of the cooperation and consistency mechanism established by the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).
The future Belgian presidency of the Council of the European Union asked the EESC to provide their insights on the rethinking of the internal market in light of the acceleration of the Union’s twin transitions towards a green and digital economy and on crafting a European Industrial Strategy that positions industries as the backbone of Europe's economy.
The Belgian presidency would like the EESC to provide an opinion on how to tackle poverty through social innovation and the development of the social economy. This opinion will highlight the reforms needed to adapt the regulatory frameworks and to ensure sufficient financing for social economy initiatives.
This initiative reports on the application and impact of EU rules on payment services, as required by the review clause of the Second Payment Services Directive and announced in the Commission´s retail payments strategy of 2020.
The purpose of the opinion is to contribute to the further development of the foresight in the EU policy-making. The opinion will comment on the Commission's 2023 Annual foresight Report, which focused on the sustainability and people's wellbeing at the heart of Europe's Open Strategic Autonomy.
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