"The imposition of so-called austerity measures is leading to the strangulation, suffocation and destruction of thousands of SMEs on a daily basis,"

said GUE/NGL MEP Inês Zuber during this morning's joint debate on SMEs and their access to the structural funds.

She said it was impossible to promote economic development in today's climate of austerity and the dramatic consequences of these policies and their aims

and cited the example of Portugal where measures imposed by the Troika have resulted in "social catastrophe" with a total of 203,500 job losses in one year,

many of which are in SMEs that have closed due to bankruptcy.

"Yes, it is important to support the creation of SMEs but it would also be logical not to apply policies that are at this very moment condemning existing

SMEs to bankruptcy," she said. In terms of EU funding, "it is necessary to make them more accessible to SMEs by cutting red tape and streamlining processes,

ensuring timely payment and positive discrimination in areas and sectors facing particular difficulties," concluded MEP Zuber.

GUE/NGL Press Contacts:

Gay Kavanagh +32 473 84 23 20

gabrielle.kavanagh@europarl.europa.eu 

David Lundy +32 485 50 58 12

david.lundy@europarl.europa.eu

European United Left / Nordic Green Left

European Parliamentary Group

www.guengl.eu