European Business Calls for Tangible Simplification Measures

At today’s panel on simplification at the Digital Summit in Gdańsk, Milena Jabůrková, Vice-President of the Confederation of Industry of the Czech Republic, presented a joint position of leading European business associations in support of recent calls by several Member States to postpone the application of the AI Act until essential implementation tools are in place.

The statement – endorsed by the Confederation of Industry of the Czech Republic, Confederation of Finnish Industries, Confederation of Swedish Enterprise, Federation of Belgian Enterprises, Confederation of Danish Industry, and Confederation Lewiatan (Poland) – expresses strong support for the Commission’s ambition to simplify the regulatory environment, particularly in the digital sphere. However, business leaders are calling for more than symbolic commitments.

“We need simplification that will really unload the administrative burden on companies, which is crippling not only the EU's technological innovation but its entire economy. This exercise is not only about competitiveness but about survival of the European Union’s project,” said Milena Jabůrková during the panel discussion. 

“The global environment is too challenging and small incremental improvements are not enough. If we want Europe to stay economically relevant, simplification must be big, bold, structured, and actionable. We as business confederations are ready to support it and we have already prepared detailed recommendations on what needs to be done. But it is necessary to act decisively now. That is why six business confederations from CZ, PL, BE, SW, FIN, DN issued the statement where we call for first urgent steps we need to take to achieve simplification goals,” added Jabůrková.

The joint position outlines three immediate and achievable steps:

• Include the AI Act in the Digital Omnibus initiative, as its administrative burden can be significantly reduced without undermining its purpose.
• Ensure early and structured consultations with Member States, the European Parliament, and business representatives during the drafting of the Digital Omnibus, to align regulation with practical realities.
• Postpone the application of the AI Act until key implementation tools – particularly harmonised standards created by the European Standard Organisation and the General-Purpose AI Code of Practice – are available, to provide legal certainty and reduce operational risk, especially for SMEs.

“We prepared this statement because we support the ambitions of certain Member States to bring forward the implementation of parts of the AI Act. At the same time, we have a number of other demands in areas of the digital agenda beyond the AI Act that need simplification — whether it's in the field of cybersecurity regulation, data protection, or many others. That is why we are calling for broader stakeholder involvement in consultations on the shape of the future digital omnibus,“ Jabůrková clarified.

The joint statement is intended as a constructive input to the Commission’s ongoing work on the Digital Omnibus and as a starting point for a more coordinated political and business effort to simplify Europe’s digital regulatory environment in the months ahead.