La proposition de l'UE sur l'éthique des entreprises donne de l'espoir aux ONG

UEAPME, the European SME employers’ organisation, said it was left with mixed feelings by the Commission's initiatives.

“While the plans to simplify accounting requirements for companies are to be welcome overall, the new strategy on CSR is a step back in terms of policy thinking and may cause additional costs for SMEs if the disclosure of non-financial information by companies is made compulsory,” said Luc Hendrickx, Enterprise Policy Director at UEAPME.

The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) welcomed the deregulation agenda for financial reporting but said it must be tempered by the need to reflect the wider social value of accounting and auditing, for example on bribery.

ACCA welcomed the new emphasis placed on environmental and social reporting but said other areas should not be overlooked. "Wider ethical and human rights concerns should also be part of undertakings’ business operations and core strategy. We argue that CSR should also be about responsible business behaviour in paying debts and dealing with creditors, or about employment policies such as prohibiting child labour," stressed John Davies, head of Technical at ACCA.

The European pharmaceutical industry association EFPIA applauded the Commission's CSR communication, but insisted on self-regulation as the best approach. "My industry has a well-developed system for self-regulation, ranging from disclosure to business conduct," said EFPIA Director General Richard Bergström. "Detailed rules for the promotion of medicines and interactions with health care professionals, as well as patient organisations, are laid down in a code of conduct that is binding for EFPIA members," he said.

The European Coalition for Corporate Justice (ECCJ), a pressure group, welcomed the Commission's new CSR strategy but said it now needed to be followed up. “The EU is increasingly recognising the human rights and environmental impacts of European companies around the globe," said Filip Gregor, chair of the ECCJ. "But more action is needed to really hold companies to account. We believe the EU has a duty to legislate to guarantee human rights are respected and the environment protected wherever European companies are operating."

Paul de Clerck, steering group member of ECCJ, said: “European companies such as Shell, Tesco and ArcelorMittal take the profits from their business in developing countries but don’t want to be responsible for the damage that they cause. The EU must put in place legislation that will hold European companies accountable for the damage caused by their subsidiaries or suppliers and they must take steps to make it easier for victims to go to a European court in case of abuses.”

Amnesty International said the strategy would fail to protect local communities against human rights abuses committed by EU businesses operating abroad. Amnesty cited recent abuses including two oil leaks from a Shell pipeline in the Niger Delta in 2008, and the activities of a British-based firm, Monterrico Metals PLC, which has agreed to compensate 33 Peruvian victims who had been tortured by police after protesting against mining operations of a Monterrico subsidiary.

“It’s not enough for the Commission to invite companies to practise due diligence to prevent harm to human rights”, said Nicolas Beger, Director of Amnesty International’s European Institutions Office. "The Commission and EU countries must each introduce the necessary laws".

CSR Europe, a network of around 70 multinational corporations, said businesses have come a long way since the CSR concept was launched in the mid 1990s, with most companies now taking advantage of sustainability concerns "as a source of innovation and new business opportunities."

"However, integrating CSR into global supply chains and ensuring that business contributes to sustainable development worldwide remains a major challenge for companies," it said in an interview with EurActiv.