GRTU recently presented a comprehensive set of proposals aimed at boosting SMEs. In his foreword GRTU President Paul Abela stated that GRTU continues to emphasise how much we need to keep pushing forward to “build confidence and drive growth.” He insisted that enterprises need to be supported better also through the improvement in their working environment.
The GRTU said that “the set of proposals presented are the result of intensive consultation with our members and research of the best practices that have proven very successful in other countries. GRTU, as the largest national representative of SMEs, feels that many of the schemes mentioned are the key to unlocking the full potential of SMEs and giving them aid where it really matters.”
Among GRTU’s proposals are the following:
1. Relaunching the Micro Invest Scheme.
2. Establishment of a Business Angels Matching Service and a platform for crowd funding as well as tapping into venture capital. All of these with some facilitation by Government could render results that far outreach the initial investment.
3. Facilitate of start-ups especially with regards access to finance, which is essentially the biggest obstacle, through cash-injections and the financial start-up scheme which involves covering the costs of renting a premises for a very short period and the capped pay of the owner for one month. This would help because it would give the minimum amount of time required to get some initial clients and start building a name.
4. Increasing the services offered by the business incubation and making it more dynamic.
5. Increasing the number of routes to Malta and attracting tourists during the slower season.
6. Boosting the crafts sector through the organisation of the Crafts Village, establishing a national crafts policy, quality testing and certification system for locally produced crafts, and reduction of VAT to 7% on such goods, incentives to upgrade factories and workshops and helping the crafts sector export.
7. An E-Commerce strategy including awareness raising on the potential of e-commerce and free expert advice to enterprises on the subject on what systems they could use, which would be accompanied by incentives to set up such systems.
8. Revision of the eco taxation mechanism.
9. Schemes to encourage investment in employment and training that are not time barred, simpler in their application and reimbursed by a specified deadline.
10. Increasing activities in the localities though permitting for change of use of empty buildings to back-office, etc and accompanied by a tax-credit incentive, incentives for the establishment of boutique hotels and B&Bs in the localities as well as investment in the general infrastructure of the localities through private public partnerships.
11. Granting of title of emphyteusis in lieu of lease to private enterprises over Government owned properties. GRTU also encourages Government to consider the sale of properties that have been leased or granted under title of emphyteusis to the private sector for a substantial number of years.
12. Incentivising the involvement of the private sector in healthcare.
13. Scheme for the restructuring of current industrial facilities. Some of these are currently in very precarious situations.
14. Financial measures that support innovative investments projects by SMEs, providing research assistants with subsidised pays, an R&D Research and Development Grant Scheme and a dedicated helpdesk.
15. Creation of networks for internationalisation. This would help businesses expand into new markets and increase their exports through increased collaboration and sharing of contacts.
16. Increasing competition in land based gaming and regulate illegal operations in this sector. Introduction of High Stake control and limit the amounts played on the Hot Numbers.
17. Fiscal schemes to attract the buy-to-let sector through lower VAT rates and fixed income tax rate for income generated from the rent of properties. GRTU also called for the clarification in the regulation of the applicable licences required to lease a property.
18. Encourage SMEs to take a more proactive approach in the servicing of large scale renewable.
19. Immediate Introduction of the Property Market Value Index.
20. Establishment of an Early Warning Foundation where consultants offer free advice to enterprises in difficulty on the improvement of their management skills and helps them in their banking negotiations. The foundation would help companies avoid bankruptcy and help those that have no other choice to extract themselves from impossible situations and live to fight another day.
21. Upgrade of current boat yards and tackle the shortage of marinas and pontoon berths.
22. Incentives for upgrade and investment in commercial vehicles and Limited Mileage Incentive.
23. Overhaul of the National Policy in respect to recovery of mixed waste and the setting up of a Producer Responsibility Enforcement Committee to monitor the implementation and enforcement of the Packaging Waste Directive, WEEE, Construction and Demolition Waste, End of life Vehicles and Batteries.
24. Act on the injustice whereby the percentage charged by banks or by the operator (in the case of smart cards) for electronic payments is charged not only on the price of the product but also on the VAT element.
25. A widespread scheme for Gozo enterprises to help them mitigate the transport cost of transit between Malta and Gozo. Increase the efficiency of the Gozo Channel and set up a scheme to mitigate the imbalance in employment many Gozitan enterprises go through between the summer and the winter months.
26. Introduction of a night tariff and the decrease in rental fees on the meters for commercial users.
27. Revisit the new strategy of online public procurement and set up a helpdesk to help SMEs with the process. GRTU also proposes reducing the costs for tendering.
28. Remove the need of audits for micro companies and exempt non-trading companies from the audit requirement.
29. Severely beef up efforts to tackle VAT and Eco Tax evasion on goods coming into Malta and sold for commercial purposes.
30. Specific course for females in entrepreneurship and a campaign targeting women and their role in society and the economy.
31. Exposing young people with ideas to potential investors. Fostering entrepreneurship amongst our young through courses and taking inspiring entrepreneurs to schools to give their testimony.
32. Allow self-employed to receive their pension early where this is possible without the need to remain idle for one year. On having access to pension individuals should also be allowed to continue working without having to pay for NI.
33. Foster deeper relationships between business and academia and initiative a wave of accreditation for skilled self-employed and manual workers. GRTU also calls for the facilitation of transfer of skills and the establishment of Sector Skills Councils (SSCs).