Economic policy - "This is grotesque": Associations call for a reduction in bureaucracy
The German business community has called on the federal government to make much greater efforts to reduce bureaucracy. "Bureaucracy - both nationally and increasingly at European level - is choking off the economy," said the President of the German Chamber of Industry and Commerce (DIHK), Peter Adrian, to the German Press Agency.
The German government is not making any real progress in reducing bureaucracy despite its ambitious goals. Employers' President Rainer Dulger said: "Medium-sized companies are being overwhelmed with bureaucracy, some of which they cannot even afford."
Business associations have long been calling for less bureaucracy. Before Christmas, the German government began voting on a draft law that aims to lighten the bureaucratic burden on the shoulders of citizens and entrepreneurs. This goal is to be achieved, among other things, through shorter retention periods for certain documents, more digital processes and the removal of some regulations.
Business sees a fundamental problem
The President of the Federation of German Industries, Siegfried Russwurm, said: "The fundamental evil is an abysmal mistrust of entrepreneurship. Companies must constantly prove that they are not breaking any laws. They have to document that they are complying with laws and regulations. It's like a private individual having to send a report to Flensburg every time they park according to the rules instead of relying on controls. If you are caught parking incorrectly, you get a ticket and have to pay."
Russwurm believes a similar approach would also be appropriate in industry. "Anyone who breaks the rules will be sanctioned. But comprehensive documentation of everything and everyone with a triplicate copy to the state authorities is completely excessive."
Increasingly time-consuming
Adrian cited a building permit for a simple commercial building as an example. "That used to be two pages, now at least 30 pages have to be filled out with extensive ancillary provisions. That's grotesque. The state is not only overburdening the economy with detailed control and contradictory regulations. Ultimately, it is also overburdening itself. Rules, obligations and requirements are being created that ultimately have to be monitored." As an entrepreneur, the amount of time you have to spend on reports and formalities is increasing.
Dulger, President of the Confederation of German Employers' Associations, called for as much bureaucracy as possible to be removed from companies. "The directive on checking social standards in our companies with 1,000 employees or more is as thick as the Berlin telephone directory. Many entrepreneurs are rightly asking themselves: what's the point?" Germany is suffocating itself with rules.
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The President of the DIHK, Peter Adrian, voiced his concern about the lack of progress in reducing bureaucracy by the German government, stating that it's becoming a significant burden for businesses. Rainer Dulger, the President of the Confederation of German Employers' Associations, criticized the excessive bureaucracy faced by medium-sized companies, some of which they cannot even afford.
Siegfried Russwurm, the President of the Federation of German Industries, highlighted the issue of mistrust towards entrepreneurship, stating that companies are constantly required to prove they are complying with laws and regulations. He suggested a more balanced approach, where only those breaking the rules would be sanctioned.
Adrian used the example of a building permit for a commercial building, which has increased from two pages to at least 30 pages with extensive ancillary provisions, calling it 'grotesque'. He also pointed out that the state is not only overburdening the economy but also itself with detailed control and contradictory regulations.
Dulger called for as much bureaucracy as possible to be removed from companies, especially for directives like the one on checking social standards, which he described as thick as the Berlin telephone directory. He questioned the purpose of these regulations when many entrepreneurs are finding them burdensome.
These concerns were echoed by Siegfried Russwurm, who noted that the amount of time entrepreneurs have to spend on reports and formalities is increasing. He emphasized that excessive bureaucracy stifles innovation and growth in the German economy.
The news about these calls for reducing bureaucracy was reported by the German Press Agency, under the leadership of Rainer Dulger and Peter Adrian, highlighting the urgency of addressing this issue in Germany's economic policy.
Source: www.stern.de
