What actions does the Ombudsman for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises take to protect against unjustified rejection of applications for support for industries affected by the Covid-19 epidemic?
The SME spokesman appeals to the Senate of the Republic of Poland to change the regulations regarding the unjustified rejection of applications from entrepreneurs applying for support for industries most affected by the COVID-19 epidemic. Spokesman for Small and Medium-sized Entrepreneurs, Adam Abramowicz, issued an opinion to take into account the proposed amendments to the Act of May 20, 2021, currently being processed in the Senate of the Republic of Poland, amending the Act on special solutions related to preventing, counteracting and combating COVID-19, other diseases infectious and the resulting emergencies. The proposed solutions are intended to provide assistance to all entrepreneurs who actually perform a type of economic activity entitling, as intended by the Legislator, to receive special support, including those who cannot prove their right by referring to the REGON register. The adoption of these amendments is necessary because the offices, when considering entrepreneurs’ applications for support, follow the literal interpretation of the provisions, making the granting of aid only conditional on the possession of the so-called leading PKD number. Still at the stage of legislative work in the Sejm of the Republic of Poland, in a letter of May 17, 2021, reference number WPL.445.2021.GS, the SME Ombudsman filed a motion to include these postulates in the amending act. Unfortunately, the amendments tabled in this regard were rejected at the stage of work in the committee. The SME spokesman asked for an opinion that the proposed solutions should be adopted by the Senate of the Republic of Poland. – It should be noted that the introduction of the proposed changes will not only contribute to a better implementation of the objectives of the amended act, but is also justified in terms of procedural economy. These changes will make it possible to avoid numerous, time-consuming and costly court proceedings, the initiation of which is now necessary for the effective defense of the legitimate rights of Polish entrepreneurs, comments Adam Abramowicz, Ombudsman for Small and Medium-sized Entrepreneurs. It should also be noted that the latest jurisprudence of Polish common and administrative courts indicates that the linguistic result of the interpretation of the provisions leads to a distortion of the objectives of the act, which was to counteract the negative economic effects of the spread of COVID-19, including support for the most aggrieved entrepreneurs operating in industries that found themselves in a difficult situation due to the restrictions introduced. Courts consider entrepreneurs’ complaints against decisions refusing to support them, indicating in the justifications of their judgments that in order to determine the entrepreneur’s right to receive aid, it is important to determine what activity the entrepreneur actually conducted, and not what kind of activity was included in the data contained in the REGON register, which data the body cannot take indiscriminately.
Projekt otrzymał dofinansowanie z Norwegii poprzez Fundusze Norweskie 2014-2021, w ramach programu „Dialog społeczny – godna praca”.
