what small bosses ask of Élisabeth Borne

For Geoffroy Roux de Bézieux, “France is no longer the tax hell it once was“. Delivered on Monday in Paris in his introductory speech to the Rencontre des entrepreneurs de France (REF) which was held for two days at the Longchamp racecourse, this little sentence from the president of Medef is not contradictory with the fact that many remains to be done, in terms of corporate taxation, to strengthen the attractiveness and competitiveness of the France site.

Moreover, the entrepreneurs present on site and interviewed by Le Figaro make no mistake about it: everyone expects from the Borne government, which is currently putting the finishing touches to the finance bill (PLF) for 2023, which must be presented at the end of the month, further reductions in levies.

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In this sense, the abolition already announced of the Contribution on the Added Value of Companies (CVAE) delights the majority of French bosses, and this for an amount of 7 billion euros. “The reduction of production taxes is essentialconfirms Patrick Ugarte, director of DocumentHom, a digital document management platform located in Loiret. It remains to be hoped that it will be done well in the 2023 budget and in one go…

Although according to him it primarily concerns companies subject to export, Patrick Ugarte welcomes a development that will allow French companies to gain in competitiveness against their European competitors. Enough to satisfy the desire of MEDEF, which wishes to see the government reaffirm the supply policy implemented in the country since 2015.This is necessarily a good thing when the morale of entrepreneurs is not looking good given the economic context.explains Sylvie Salinie, president of the installation group of terminals and electricity meters Agiscom, based in Île-de-France. Inevitably, the impact will be greater for industrial companies than for mine in business services.“.

“The reduction in production taxes is essential”

Patrick Ugarte, director of DocumentHom, digital document management platform located in Loiret

In order to go further, some leaders are also calling for a drop in payroll costs – which legislatively depends on the social security financing bill (PLFSS) now presented on the same day as the PLF. This is the case of Sébastien Zecca, also head of a Paris region group Altair Sécurité and AGENET Cleaning. This business leader expects the government to “restores value to work. A reduction in charges would make it possible to increase wages in a context of lasting inflation, and to free up more room for investment, in particular in the ecological transition.“.

In addition to the recurring request to lower the charges addressed to the State, entrepreneurs are sounding the alarm on training. “In 4-5 years, it has completely disintegrated“, insists Sylvie Salinie. Some, like Patrick Ugarte, hope for the implementation of a training tax credit to support it. “There is a real expectation in all sectors of activity», Supports this boss.

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Invited to the Longchamp racecourse to debate, Carole Delga, the president of the Occitanie region, also suggested entrusting the regions with the mission of guiding young people. The proposal seduces Sylvie Salinie, who considers the current system unsuitable. “We get almost no help“, she laments. Ditto for Sébastien Zecca, who would appreciate seeing a section dedicated to internal training included in the vote for the next budget. “Its cost remains high while the training needs are considerable“, he recalls.

Although they remain in the minority, some entrepreneurs are tired of the gloomy economic climate that is coming. “What can politicians do?”wonders laconically the creator of a horticulture start-up, who says she has no expectations of the PLF.