Chambers Ireland Weekly Digest-31 July 2018
- European Parliament of Enterprises 2018 – Registration now OPEN
This year’s European Parliament of Enterprises (EPE) will take place in Brussels on Wednesday the 10th of October 2018.
The Irish delegation will have 11 spots (in parallel with the number of Irish MEPs) with an attendance fee of €300 per person attending, and the purpose of the event is to promote and discuss the various issues of concern to business and to the top decision makers in the EU.
Registration is now open and will be made available to Chambers of a first come first served basis, with one member per Chamber being allocated initially and any additional spaces to be made available after that.
Our EU & International Affairs Manager, Emma Kerins, will be sharing regular updates in the coming weeks.
To register, please email Emma.Kerins@Chambers.ie with the name of the member attending from your Chamber before the 24th of August.
2.Chambers Ireland Economic Survey 2019
The annual Chambers Ireland Economic Survey 2019, in collaboration with Eurochambres, will open on Wednesday, 1st of August and run for two months until the 28th of September.
The survey will be available from this Wednesday and takes no more than 2 minutes to complete.
The survey will be available at this link from Wednesday, 1st of August – https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/SWMM929
If you have any questions, please contact emma.kerins@chambers.ie
3.Consultation on Irish Water’s Non-Domestic Tariff Harmonisation
The CRU has published Irish Water’s proposals for a new Non-Domestic Tariff Framework which will apply to Irish Water’s non-domestic (business) customers. The purpose of the Framework is to generate a more harmonised suite of tariffs for non-domestic water and wastewater customers.
The Framework will set out the ‘rules’ for how tariffs are designed and how customers will be transitioned to their new tariffs over time. Irish Water hopes that a more harmonised approach will benefit customers in terms of transparency, simplicity and equity.
The CRU wishes to seek views from interested parties on each of Irish Water’s proposals before the CRU makes a decision on the tariff design and transitional aspects of the new Framework.
To view the relevant information, please visit https://www.cru.ie/document_group/establishing-irish-waters-non-domestic-tariff-framework/
Please contact Elisha elisha.collierobrien@chambers.ie by Tuesday, July 31st COB.
4.Future of Europe / European Elections 2019
As you may know, the European Commission has an ongoing public consultation concerning the Future of Europe (open until next year) and the Irish Government has also been holding a number of public events on this matter.
Our colleagues in Eurochambres plan to draft their own European Chamber position paper on what the wider Network feels should be the priorities for the EU going forward.
They have asked for our views on what business believes the priorities of the EU should be going forward.
We believe having a business friendly position on the Future of Europe will be very important ahead of the European elections in May 2019.
Please feel free to contact our EU & International Affairs Manager Emma Kerins to discuss this by phone on +353 (0) 1 400 4303,
alternatively please send on your feedback or comments directly to emma.kerins@chambers.ie before Monday, 20th of August.
5.Commission Rules of Origin Questionnaire and Test Tool
The European Commission has released an online test tool and questionnaire, aimed at exporters, that has been designed to give information to operators and to help address their needs in relation to Rules of Origin.
The below link will give you access to the anonymous questionnaire and the test version of the online tool. It will take approx. 10-15 minutes to complete the form.
http://madb.europa.eu/madb/indexPubli.htm
After filling in the questionnaire you are asked to try the test version of a ‘decision tree’. This ‘tree’ is a draft tool to aid EU exporters in determining whether their products comply with the Rules of Origin set out in our FTAs.
The questionnaire will be available online until 31 July 2018.
6.Department of Business, Enterprise & Innovation – Disruptive Technologies Innovation Fund Overview
The Department presented an overview of the Disruptive Technologies Innovation Fund (DTIF) including eligibility criteria, application process and key considerations for applicants at the DTIF information event in Enterprise Ireland on 27 July 2018 –
7.Department of Business, Enterprise & Innovation – Brexit Preparedness Notices
Efforts are currently underway to reach an agreement to ensure the withdrawal of the UK from the EU occurs with minimum disruption and to put in place a framework for a future relationship which will enable the closest possible EU-UK relationship post Brexit.
However, the UK’s notification of its intention to withdraw from the EU has created significant uncertainties. The European Commission has therefore sought to clarify what the situation will be for a number of business sectors in the event that no agreement is reached to mitigate the impacts of the UK’s withdrawal.
Notices have been issued in respect of industrial products, company law, trademarks, auditing and import and export licenses as well as a range of other areas. A list of the notices published to date are available to view on the Commission’s website at the following link: European Commission Brexit Preparedness
The Department of Business, Enterprise & Innovation (DBEI) is encouraging firms to review these notices and consider relevant actions that may be required to mitigate any potential negative impacts that may arise for them in terms of Brexit.
If you have any queries regarding these Brexit Preparedness Notices or the industrial sector which your business operates in, with regards to preparing for Brexit,
please contact our EU & International Affairs Manager Emma Kerins, via her email address: Emma.Kerins@chambers.ie
8.Peninsula: What to Expect when a Workplace Relations Commission Hearing Date is Coming
Peninsula, the professional advice service, have provided a new article on taking the necessary steps to prepare for a Workplace Relations Hearing.
The article provides an overview on how Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) services operate, what services the WRC provides for and more.