The Minister for Industry, Business and Financial Affairs’ efforts to reduce unnecessary bureaucracy are crucial for strengthening competitiveness and enabling the green transition, according to Jakob Brandt, CEO of SMVdanmark. This comes in response to criticism from Kira Peter-Hansen and Marianne Bigum of SF (Socialist People’s Party), who have labeled the minister’s actions as populist and emotionally driven.

Brandt argues that a significant portion of the burdens faced by businesses originate in the EU, and that Denmark also has opportunities to reduce bureaucracy domestically. He emphasizes that streamlining regulations is not about abandoning environmental responsibility but about ensuring that companies can navigate the green transition without being overwhelmed by complexity.

An analysis by SMVdanmark in 2024 revealed that SMEs spend 49 million hours annually on bureaucratic tasks, costing a total of DKK 14 billion. This substantial amount, Brandt points out, could have been invested in green growth initiatives. Furthermore, the Danish Business Authority estimates that Danish companies face costs of over DKK 11 billion to implement new CSRD rules, with ongoing annual costs of DKK 7.5 billion.

Brandt stresses the importance of analyzing the real-world consequences of regulations before their implementation, and he believes that correcting rules that were adopted without sufficient assessment is simply common sense. He warns that insisting on unchanged requirements for symbolic reasons risks hindering the green transition due to burdensome reporting requirements and costly processes.

The goal of regulatory simplification is not to undermine ambitions but to make them achievable, Brandt concludes. He believes that everyone should support the Minister’s and the Commission’s efforts to streamline regulations.