SBA Fact Sheet FRANCE 2010/11

Transcription

1 EN SBA Fact Sheet FRANCE 2010/11 The Fact Sheet in a nutshell: France s SME sector is expected to recover to pre-crisis levels only after 2011, with lasting adverse effects on employment. The SME sector in France lost jobs between , representing 4,5 % of the total workforce. France scores above or on par with the EU average for most SBA principles. However, indicators have stayed somewhat stagnant over the past years. In 2010/2011, France addressed six out of ten SBA areas through targeted policy measures, focusing on facilitating access to finance and responsive administration. The SBA Fact Sheets 1 : The Small Business Act (SBA) is the EU s flagship policy initiative to support small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The aim of the annually updated Fact Sheets is to improve understanding of recent trends and national policies affecting SMEs. 1. SMEs in France basic figures Number of Enterprises Employment Value added France EU27 France EU27 France EU27 Number Share Share Number Share Share Billion Share Share Micro ,1% 92,1% ,3% 29,8% ,4% 21,6% Small ,8% 6,6% ,3% 20,4% ,9% 18,9% Medium-sized ,9% 1,1% ,7% 16,8% ,7% 17,9% SMEs ,8% 99,8% ,4% 66,9% ,0% 58,4% Large ,2% 0,2% ,6% 33,1% ,0% 41,6% Total ,0% 100,0% ,0% 100,0% ,0% 100,0% Estimates for 2010, based on figures from the Structural Business Statistics Database_revised (Eurostat). The estimates have been produced by Cambridge Econometrics.The data cover the 'business economy' which includes industry, construction, trade, and services (NACE Rev. 1.1 Sections C to I, K). The data does not cover the enterprises in agriculture, forestry, fishing or the largely nonmarket services such as education and health. The advantage of using Eurostat data is that the statistics from different countries have been harmonised and are comparable across countries. The disadvantage is that for some countries these data may be different from data published by national authorities. France s SME sector closely resembles the EU s, taken as a whole. The most notable difference is that the group of micro enterprises in France, while relatively more numerous, employs fewer people (24 % of the workforce in the business economy) than the European average (almost 30 %). The sectoral distribution of SMEs in France also closely emulates the European average. The highest concentration is in services (44 %), followed by trade (29 %), construction (18%) and manufacturing (11 %). The crisis has taken a toll on French enterprises, temporarily halting the positive long-term developments in the number of small and medium-sized businesses, their contribution to employment and economic value added. However, the heaviest and most lasting impact seems to have been on employment. It is estimated that jobs were lost in SMEs between , which represents about 4,5 % of the total workforce. Almost half of these jobs were lost in SMEs active in services, particularly in real estate, renting and business activity. Large companies lost around 3.8 % of their employees over the same period. Regarding the future outlook for 2011, estimates indicate a slow recovery, more or less in line with the EU average. The number of enterprises and their contribution to GDP (as measured by the gross value added) are expected to exceed the pre-crisis levels by the end of This is not the case for employment in enterprises, where improvements seem to be much slower, both in France and the European Union in general, confirming the expectations of a jobless recovery. 1

2 SME trends in France 2 Number of enterprises (Index: 2003=100, estimations as from 2008 onwards) e 2009e 2010e 2011e SMEs in France SMEs in the EU Employment in enterprises (Index: 2003=100, estimations as from 2008 onwards) e 2009e 2010e 2011e SMEs in France SMEs in the EU Value added of enterprises (Index: 2003=100, estimations as from 2008 onwards) e 2009e 2010e 2011e SMEs in France SMEs in the EU 2

3 2. France s SBA profile France s performance against the EU average by SBA area 3 Overall, the statistics on SMEs give a mixed SBA profile for France. The country performs better than the EU average in four out of the nine SBA principles for which data are available (there is no data on the area average for principle 9 Environment for any country), namely Second chance, Responsive administration, State aid and public procurement and Internationalisation. Single market France s SBA performance: Status quo and trend between Environment Progress over time 8. Skills and Innovation (compound annual growth rate in ) EU average +/- 0,5 standard deviations France 10. Internationalization 7. Single market Low Performance, Progress Low Performance, Deterioration 1. Entrepreneurship 1,0 0,8 0,6 0,4 0, Access to finance 7 2. Second chance 3. Think small first 4. Responsive administration 5. State aid & Public procurement ,0-2,0-1,0 0,0 1,0 2,0 3,0 Performance (distance from the EU average, in standard deviation, EU average = 0) 3 2 is the only area in which France scores below average. In the remaining four principles, France performs in line with its EU peers. When comparing France s performance with the EU average (please see the graph below) and with the country s own past results, a rather mixed picture emerges. Most policy areas show zero or limited progress. The best improvements seem to have taken place in Internationalisation, Entrepreneurship and Skills and innovation. The stagnating growth in area 7 (Single market) may be of most concern as it also scores the worst performance compared to the EU average. To get a fuller picture, France s policy record 4 in 2010 and the first quarter of 2011 was analysed. It revealed that the Government has addressed six of the ten principles of the Small Business Act through targeted policy measures. A lack of policy initiatives in a given area should not, however, automatically be interpreted negatively, as it may also mean that crucial policy measures are already in place. In 2010 and the beginning of 2011, the main focus was on access to finance, as the Government launched the Large National Loan of 35 billion euro. Another important step was the broad consultation process put in place concerning the key policy actions needed to restore competitiveness to the French industrial sector. 5 4 High Performance, Progress High Performance, Deterioration 30% 25% Key: 20% 1 - Entrepreneurship 2 - Second chance 15% 3 - Think small first 10% 4 - Responsive administration 5% 5 - State aid & public procurement 0% 6 - Access to finance 7 - Single market -5% 8 - Skills & Innovation 9 - Environment (no score -10% could be calculated) 10 - Internationalisation -15% 3

4 I. Entrepreneurship Entrepreneurship rate (% of adults who have started a business or are taking the steps to start one), 2009; France: 9%; EU-avg: 12% Entrepreneurial intention (% of adults who intend to start a business within 3 yrs), 2010; France: 14,2%; EU-avg: 11,08% Opportunity-driven entrepreneurship (% of entrepreneurs), 2009; France: 47%; EUavg: 55% Preference for self-employment (% of respondents who would prefer to be selfemployed), 2009; France: 50,8%; EU-avg: 45,1% Feasibility of becoming self-employed (% of respondents who think it is feasible for them to become self-employed), 2009; France: 31,4%; EU-avg: 28,3% Share of adults who agree that school education helped them develop an entrepreneurial attitude, 2009; France: 60%; EU-avg: 49% Share of adults who agree that successful entrepreneurs receive a high status, 2010; France: 67,9%; EU-avg: 71,26% Media attention for entrepreneurship, 2010; France: 44,7%; EU-avg: 51,35% The available indicators measuring entrepreneurship show that France performs on par with its European peers. Nevertheless, there is room for improvement, in particular on entrepreneurial activity, where France scores belowaverage for both the share of entrepreneurs in the total population (9 % vs. 12 % in the EU) and the proportion of opportunity-driven entrepreneurs, meaning people who are pulled into entrepreneurship because they recognise an opportunity (47 % vs. 55 % in the EU). Society s perception of entrepreneurship, measured by the degree of media attention and the status given to entrepreneurs in society, also seems to be slightly less favourable for business owners in France compared to the EU average. Despite this, half of the non-entrepreneurial population indicate that they would prefer to be self-employed given the choice. About a third also think that it would be feasible to become an entrepreneur in the near future, and 14 % have clear plans to start a business in the next three years. School education is, significantly more than in other member states, the lever for developing a sense of initiative and action, which is a characteristic of entrepreneurs and business owners. This is one area in which France clearly exceeds the EU average. On the policy front, France has made some efforts to improve the entrepreneurial environment. Most importantly, on 1 January 2011, the Independent Contractor Limited Liability Statute ( Statut d entrepreneur individuel à responsabilité limitée (EIRL)) was adopted. This statute allows individual entrepreneurs who own or are starting a business in any sector of activity, regardless of their turnover, to separate business assets from their personal assets. By protecting personal assets, this measure is likely to encourage entrepreneurship and small enterprise creation. 4

5 II. Second chance Time to close a business (in years), 2011; France: 1,9; EU-avg: 1,98 Cost to close a business (cost to recover debt as % of the debtor's estate), 2011; France: 9%; EU-avg: 10,78% Degree of support for allowing for a second chance, 2009; France: 86%; EU-avg: 81% The indicators measuring second chance reveal a positive picture. France appears to offer relatively favourable conditions for honest entrepreneurs who have failed and want to start over again. The time needed to close a business (1.9 years) and the corresponding cost (9 % of the debtor s estate) are close to the EU-27 average. Furthermore, the most positive development is that French society increasingly recognises the business potential of re-starters and is more inclined to give a fresh start to entrepreneurs who have faced bankruptcy before. On the policy front, no significant measures were taken in 2010 and the first quarter of III. Think Small First Communication and simplification of rules and procedures (0=maximum, 6=minimum), 2008; France: 0; EU-avg: 0,39 Burden of government regulation (1=burdensome, 7=not burdensome), 2010; France: 2,6; EU-avg: 3,12 Licenses and permits systems (o=maximum, 6=minimum), 2008; France: 2; EU-avg: 1,94 The situation on the Think Small First front is mixed, although on the whole close to the EU average. The indicator on Communication and simplification of rules and procedures reflects action to reduce and simplify the administrative burden of interacting with government. Calculated using the country s self-reported answers from 2008, it gives above-average results. This is contrasted, however, by entrepreneurs perceptions that there still is a significant burden on businesses to comply with governmental administrative requirements for permits and reporting. Another important feature of the Think Small First principle is consultation of SMEs prior to making legislative or administrative changes. To probe the opinions of all social actors, the French government organised, between October 2009 and March 2010, a wide public consultation on the general state of the industry ( Etats Généraux de l Industrie ) to identify key issues and propose policy action to restore the French industrial sector, by putting the industry at the heart of a major societal project. The final document resulting from this consultation proposed 23 policy measures such as the industry week, the Ombudsman for industry subcontractors and the National Conference of Industry (CNI), which is in charge of following up implementation of the measures. The CNI is also responsible for another consultation taking place between February and May 2011 on the basis of the COE Rexecode report Put an end to the divergence of competitiveness between France and Germany. The CNI is tasked with securing broad consensus on further action. 5

6 IV. Responsive Administration Time to start a business (calendar days), 2011; France: 7; EU-avg: 14,26 Cost required to start a business (% of income per capita), 2011; France: 0,9%; EU-avg: 5,47% Paid in minimum capital (% of income per capita), 2011; France: 0%; EU-avg: 18,76% Time required to transfer property (calendar days), 2011; France: 59; EU-avg: 33,96 Cost required to transfer property (% of property value), 2011; France: 6,1%; EU-avg: 4,68% Number of tax payments per year, 2011; France: 7; EU-avg: 16,94 Time required to comply with major taxes (hours per year), 2011; France: 132; EU-avg: 218,04 Cost to enforce contracts (% of claim), 2011; France: 17,4%; EU-avg: 20,84% Full online availability of the basic 8 public services to businesses, 2010; France: 87,5; EU-avg: 89,35 Out of the ten SBA principles, responsive administration is the area where France scored the highest compared to the EU average. There is still room for improvement on formal property registration and transfer procedures, because in France it takes longer and costs more to buy or sell property than in the European Union, on average. Similarly, the indicator measuring the online availability of 8 basic public services to businesses (such as social contributions, corporate tax, VAT, registration of a new company, submission of data to the statistical office, customs declaration, environment-related permits and public procurement) has not yet reached 100 %, although it is close to the EU average of almost 90 %. Other indicators that are important for day-to-day business operations (number and duration of tax payments, cost of enforcing contracts) and indicators focusing on particular milestones in the life-cycle of a business (start-up conditions 6 ) give a very positive picture. During the past year, France has taken several measures to improve the environment for SMEs and reduce the administrative burden in interacting with the administration. Between 2009 and 2011, the first General Revision of Public Policies (RGPP révision générale des politiques publiques ) simplified some administrative tasks for SMEs. Measures in 2010 and 2011 include opening a private web space for enterprises to undertake administrative tasks such as transferring the head office, a single contact point for creating a company, and a single declaration for recruiting apprentices. The second General Revision of Public Policies (RGPP) (for ) is expected to further simplify administrative tasks for SMEs. During January-April 2011, a consultation for simplifying the legal environment for SMEs ( Assises de la simplification de la règlementation des PME ) was conducted, and led to the announcement of a set of policy measures in line with the enterprises expectations. In early 2011, the creation of regional contact points for SMEs within the regional representations of the government was announced to help solve day-to-day difficulties faced by SMEs. This should include setting up individual contact points for about SMEs of intermediary size and for SMEs with a high growth potential. 6

7 V. State aid and Public procurement SME's share in the total value of public contracts awarded, 2008; France: 45%; EU-avg: 38% State aid for SMEs (% of total aid), 2009; France: 6,8%; EU-avg: 6,9% Average delay in payments from public authorities (in days), 2010; France: 21; EU-avg: 25,1 e-procurement availability (pre-award), 2010; France: 90; EU-avg: 72,94 France scores clearly above the EU average on state aid and public procurement. Small and medium-sized enterprises in France account for a higher proportion of the value of public procurement contracts (45 % vs. 38 % in the EU), although this share is still below their contribution to the economy (56 % of gross value added). This relatively good performance may be due to the fact that e-procurement procedures are clearly more accessible to potential bidders in France than in other EU countries. Small businesses in France like most small businesses across the European Union only marginally benefit from state aid schemes, with only about 7 % of total aid benefiting SMEs in On the policy front, no significant measures were taken in 2010 and the first quarter of VI. Access to finance Share of bank loan applications by SMEs that were not successful, 2009; France: 19%; EU-avg: 23% Access to public financial support including guarantees (% that indicated a deterioration), 2009; France: 17%; EU-avg: 22% Willigness of banks to provide a loan (%share that indicated a deterioration), 2009; France: 30%; EU-avg: 30% Relative difference in interest rate levels between loans above 1 million EUR and loans below EUR 1million, 2010; France: 24,88%; EU-avg: 23,98% Total duration to get paid (no, of days), 2010; France: 55,67; EU-avg: 54,02 Lost payments (% of total turnover), 2010; France: 2,2%; EU-avg: 2,78% Venture capital investments - early stage (% of GDP), 2009; France: 0,019%; EUavg: 0,014% Strength of legal rights, 2011; France: 7; EU-avg: 6,81 Depth of credit information, 2011; France: 4; EU-avg: 4,47 EU Structural Funds dedicated to stimulating entrepreneurship and SMEs in (% of total allocation by MS), 2011; France: 10%; EU-avg: 22% EAFRD dedicated to Support for business creation and development in (% of total allocation), 2011; France: 0,31%; EU-avg: 2,29% 7

8 Since 2009, the financial crisis has negatively affected lending in France. The magnitude of the deterioration in access to credit in France is similar to the EU average. The indicators measuring credit lending are generally on par with the EU: 19 % of SMEs were denied credit by banks in 2009, 17 % indicated a deterioration in access to public guarantees, and 30 % have noticed a declining willingness of banks to provide loans. On top of that, the cost of credit for small businesses (for loans under 1 million) is about 25 % higher than for larger enterprises (which generally need loans of over 1 million). French businesses have relatively fewer cash-flow problems than elsewhere in the EU, as proven by the indicator measuring the proportion of lost payments in total turnover (2.2 % vs. 2.7 % in the EU). However, the total duration for payment for a delivered good or service is as long as the EU-wide average (55 days). Institutions and systems that can facilitate access to finance, such as credit registry bureaus and the legal rights of lenders or borrowers are as solid as in most other EU countries. The same can be said of the availability of early-stage venture capital, which amounted to % of the country s GDP in A few policy measures have been taken since 2010 to improve the situation in this policy area in France. Most notably, in 2010, the Government launched the large national loan ( grand emprunt national ) of 35 billion to finance future investment ( investissements d avenir ) in five priority sectors: higher education, training and research ( 19 bn); industry, in particular SMEs ( 6.5 bn); sustainable environment ( 5 bn); and the digital economy ( 4.5 bn). Funds were to be allocated in 2010 and The objective of the loan is to modernise and boost the competitiveness of the country, by promoting investment and innovation in five priority sectors to generate growth and jobs. As of 1 January 2010, the government replaced the professional tax (TP - Taxe professionnelle ) by the regional contribution to the economy (CET - contribution économique territorial ) which eliminates the component of the corporate tax based on investment in machinery, tools, transportation equipment and office furniture, and replaces it by a tax on value-added. This eliminates a competitive disadvantage in comparison to countries that do not tax investment on machinery, tools, transportation equipment and office furniture and is expected to boost investment and restore the attractiveness of France. The new tax should allow companies to save about 2 to 4.7 bn yearly starting in It should cut the cost of investing in tools and machinery by about 20 % and decrease salary taxes by 1.8 bn. VII. Single market Share of SMEs with intra-eu imports (%), 2007; France: 2,06%; EU-avg: 17,69% Share of SMEs with intra-eu exports (%), 2007; France: 1,06%; EU-avg: 6,82% Single market directives not transposed or notified (%), 2010; France: 1,2; EU-avg: 0,91 Number of directives overdue by 2+ years, 2010; France: 1; EU-avg: 0,85 Average transposition delay for overdue directives (in months), 2010; France: 7,3%; EU-avg: 7,12% 8

9 The single market is one of the few SBA principles where France s score clearly trails the EU average and where there is the most room for improvement. SMEs in France seem particularly reluctant to make use of the EU s single market by extending their activities through importing from and exporting to other EU countries. But in terms of internal market legislation and the transposition of EU legislation into national law, France seems to be performing at the same pace as its EU peers. On the policy front, no significant measures were taken to improve the situation in 2010 and the first quarter of VIII. Skills and innovation SMEs introducing product or process innovations (% of SMEs), 2008; France: 32,09%; EU-avg: 34,18% SMEs introducing marketing or organizational innovations (% of SMEs), 2008; France: 38,51%; EU-avg: 39,09% SMEs innovating in-house (% of SMEs), 2008; France: 29,95%; EU-avg: 30,25% Innovative SMEs collaborating with others (% of SMEs), 2008; France: 13,52%; EU-avg: 11,16% Sales of new to market and new to firm innovations (% of turnover), 2008; France: 13,25%; EU-avg: 13,26% SMEs participating in EU funded research (number per SMEs), 2010; France: 12,69; EU-avg: 20,95 SMEs selling online (% of SMEs), 2010; France: 12%; EU-avg: 13% SMEs purchasing oline (% of SMEs), 2010; France: 19%; EU-avg: 28% Training enterprises (% of all enterprises), 2005; France: 74%; EU-avg: 58,48% Employees' participation rate in education and training (% of total no of employees in microfirms), 2009; France: 9,3%; EU-avg: 12,62% France is on par with the EU average in this area, which covers both skills/training and innovation aspects. For example, the country gets an average score on all indicators measuring innovative performance in SMEs. About 32 % of the French SMEs have introduced product or process innovations, 38 % have introduced marketing or organisational innovations, and 30 % have produced these innovations in-house. French SMEs seem more open to work with each other to innovate, but they are less likely to participate in EUfunded research programmes, with only 13 in SMEs having participated in projects financed under the Framework Programme 7. Apart from the innovation indicators, French SMEs perform slightly below average on other aspects, such as their IT readiness, defined by their ability to sell their products and make purchases online. The two indicators measuring training and skills development show somewhat diverging results: while the proportion of enterprises providing vocational training to their employees is quite high compared to the EU average (74 % vs. 58 %), French micro firms are less likely to ensure that their employees participate in lifelong learning activities than their peers in other EU countries. On the policy front, no significant measures were taken in 2010 and the first quarter of

10 IX. Environment Innovations with environmental benefits, 2008; France: 0,04%; EUavg: 0,04% Only one indicator tracking performance on environmental aspects is available, namely the share of small and medium-sized enterprises that produce innovations with environmental benefits for the enterprise and/or end-user. It is therefore insufficient to draw any general conclusions. On the policy front, France has taken some legal steps to create a sound basis for future green growth. In July 2010, the law Grenelle 2 crystallised the commitments made during the broad consultation Grenelle de l environnement. The 248 articles of the law should mobilise resources to develop green growth, focusing on 11 areas of the economy including building and planning, transport and mobility, energy and waste. This law is considered to have the potential to boost economic recovery through innovation and green investment in products and services. X. Internationalisation SMEs importing from outside the EU (% of SMEs), 2007; France: 3,02%; EU-avg: 6,91% SMEs exporting outside the EU (% of SMEs), 2007; France: 3,58%; EUavg: 3,88% Cost required to import (in USD), 2011; France: 1248; EU-avg: 1097,64 Time required to import (in days), 2011; France: 11; EU-avg: 12,35 Number of documents required to import, 2011; France: 2; EU-avg: 5,35 Cost required to export (In USD), 2011; France: 1078; EU-avg: 1043,46 Time required to export (in days), 2011; France: 9; EU-avg: 11,71 Number of documents required to export, 2011; France: 2; EU-avg: 4,5 N Based on the available indicators measuring internationalisation, France exceeds the EU average. However, this stems largely from good general framework conditions for trading, and does not reflect the performance indicators measuring the proportion of French SMEs that actually export to or import from third markets, which remains rather low. France appears clearly less bureaucratic than other EU countries regarding the total number of documents required for exporting or importing. But this is not translated in time or cost advantages for the trading businesses. The cost and time needed to export or import hovers around the EU average. On the policy front, France has some plans to address the weaknesses identified above. By 2012, the state agency Ubifrance should become the single operator encouraging SMEs to export. Ubifrance will then be active in 56 countries (44 in 2010). To do so, Ubifrance will incorporate staff from international representations of the French Ministry of Economy. Transferring staff should improve coordination, reactivity and reduce duplication of efforts to support SMEs. The objective is to double the 10

11 number of companies supported in their export activities, to reach SMEs by the end of

12 3. Good practice To show what the government actually does to promote SMEs, we include an example of good practice. As part of the first General Revision of Public Policies (RGPP révision générale des politiques publiques ), eight administrations representing the two Ministries of Employment and of Economy were merged in early 2010 into a single office under the name DIRECCTE. The DIRECCTE is the Regional Office for Companies, Competition, Consumers, Labour and Employment ( directions régionales des entreprises, de la concurrence, de la consommation, du travail et de l emploi ). The regional office pools resources to offer a single contact point covering all aspects and stages of corporate life. The Secretary of State in charge of business, crafts, small and medium-sized firms, tourism and services has built on this initiative and set up the following in early 2011: - Regional contact points for SMEs ( correspondants PME départementaux ) to help solve daily difficulties; - Individual contact points ( referents individualisés ) for medium-sized businesses and SMEs with high growth potential. The objectives of this initiative are to help enterprises that experience difficulties, to inform them of government action, to fund and help them fulfil corresponding administrative tasks and to better understand their needs. In addition, internships in enterprises will be organised for all regional and individual contact points to increase understanding of their daily work. The regional contact points will in turn be better armed to simplify the legal environment for SMEs through the broad consultation launched in early They will survey the difficulties faced by enterprises in carrying out regular administrative tasks. About the SBA Fact Sheets The Small Business Act (SBA) Fact Sheets are produced by DG ENTR as part of the SME Performance Review (SPR), which is its main vehicle providing economic analysis of SME issues. They combine the latest available statistical and policy information for the 27 EU Member States and another 10 non-member States which also contribute to the EU s Competitiveness and Innovation Framework Programme (CIP). The Fact Sheets produced annually help to organise the available information to facilitate SME policy assessments and monitor SBA implementation. They document the status quo and progress. They are not an assessment of Member State policies but should be regarded as an additional source of information designed to improve evidence-based policy making. For example, the Fact Sheets cite only those policy measures deemed relevant by local SME policy experts. They do not, and cannot, reflect all measures taken by the government over the reference period. More policy information can be found on a database accessible from the SPR website. Please see the end notes overleaf. For more information SME Performance Review: Small Business Act: The European Small Business Portal: [email protected] 12

13 1 The SBA Fact Sheets benefited substantially from input by the European Commission s Joint Research Centre (JRC) in Ispra, Italy. The JRC made major improvements to the methodological approach, statistical work on the dataset and the visual presentation of the data. 2 The three graphs below describe the trend over time for the variables. They consist of index values for the years since 2003, with the base year 2003 set at a value of 100. As from 2008, the graphs show estimates of the development over time, based on figures from the Structural Business Statistics Database (Eurostat). The estimates were produced by Cambridge Econometrics. The data cover the business economy which includes industry, construction, trade, and services (NACE Rev. 1.1 Sections C to I, K). The data does not cover enterprises in agriculture, forestry, fishing or largely non-market services, such as education and health. A detailed methodology can be consulted at: 3 The SBA radar chart plots for the different SBA areas the relative position of an individual country vis-à-vis the EU average. The individual values represent averages across all available indicators for this area. The scale is from 0 (minimum or worst in the EU-27 class ) to 1 (maximum or best in class ). The EU average is located between those extremes and plotted as a grey band in the chart. The area average for principle 9 ( environment ) is missing for all countries due to a lack of data. 4 The policy measures presented in this SBA Fact Sheet may only be a selection of the measures taken by the Government in 2010 and the first three months of The selection was made by the SME policy country expert contracted by Ecorys (DG ENTR s lead contractor for the Fact Sheets). The experts were asked only to select those measures that, in their view, were the most important, i.e. were expected to have the highest impact in the specific SBA area. The complete range of measures that the experts compiled in the framework of producing this years Fact Sheets will be published in the form of a policy database on the DG ENTR website alongside the Fact Sheets. 5 The quadrant chart combines two sets of information: firstly it shows the status quo performance based on data for the latest available years. This information is plotted along the X-axis measured in standard deviations of the simple, nonweighted arithmetical average for EU-27. The vertical corridor marked by the dotted lines defines the EU average. Secondly, it reveals the progress over time, i.e. average annual growth rates for the period The growth rates are those of the individual which the different SBA area averages are made up of. Hence, the location of a particular SBA area average in any of the 4 quadrants provides not only status quo information about where the country is located in this SBA area relative to the rest of the EU at a given point in time, but also the extent of progress made in the period The start-up indicators are based on World Bank data. For methodological details, please consult the Doing Business 2011 report at It should be noted that these findings differ from corresponding figures obtained directly from Member States, through a self reporting exercise according to which, in 2010, it took 4 days and a cost of 84 Euros to start a business. For more details please see: 13