28–30 October Participants of the Law4Growth Forum in Katowice will place proposed legislative changes on the hands of the President of Poland.
By the end of October, the capital of Upper Silesia will become the centre of discussion and work on changes to regulations that can improve the economic condition and help companies develop in Poland.
The debate between entrepreneurs, lawyers, economists and representatives of local governments will result in a set of good practices for the state and business "Law for Freedom and Development".
Among experts Dr Andrzej Dmowski - Partner in Russell Bedford Poland
The document will be submitted on the second day of the conference on the hands of the President of Poland Andrzej Duda. Congress has a chance to enter permanently on the calendar of the most important business events in the country. This. first a citizens' initiative in Central and South-East Europe, whose aim is not the debate itself, but, above all, to create concrete proposals for amending laws - in cooperation, beyond divisions.
The Law4Growth Forum, on which the President of the Republic of Poland has the honorary patronage, focuses on key issues for the competitiveness of the economy, such as public procurement law, tax law, copyright law or public-private partnership. The project was initiated by Polish entrepreneurs representing, among others, Atlas, Fabro, PZU, lawyers and institutions - the National Chamber of Commerce, the Institute of Freedom and the City of Katowice.
Over the last few months, in cooperation with law firms from the countries of Central and South-East Europe, the rules and solutions have been examined, which have proven their worth in the countries of the region and which could also be implemented in Poland.
The most interesting of them will be discussed during the October Congress during 20 specialist workshops involving more than 200 experts from different backgrounds and policy options. Together they will create concrete proposals for amending laws in Polish law and collect them in one "Right for Freedom and Development" document.
It's a perfect example of how entrepreneurs take matters into their own hands. Instead of saying that they expect changes, they will show how they can be implemented so that all companies in Poland, including small ones, can benefit.
„We expect lively discussions during workshops and meetings with President Andrzej Duda. More and more entrepreneurs report the need for immediate reforms in Polish law, especially in the context of the creation of simple and uniform rules. This is important, because as research shows, the instability of Polish law continues to increase. Every year, the number of new regulations increases, and the statistical entrepreneur, if he wanted to keep up with all the legal acts, would have to devote to reading them almost 4 hours every working day”, explains Professor Barbara Piontek, Secretary-General of the Forum for Freedom and Development Law4Growth, overseeing the content of the workshops and preparing a set of good practices “Law for Freedom and Development”.
According to Grant Thornton's report, in the first half of the year 2015 accepted 12,784 the new law typescript pages, i.e. o 7.2% more than in the same period last year, and statistical Polish micro-entrepreneur on on average every other day must complete the official forms . This is a huge burden, especially for owners of the smallest companies, but also larger companies, which, without the fresh support of the State and local governments, are unable to compete with global companies.
The city that actively engaged in the work of the Law4Growth Forum is Katowice.
„Co-organising such an event, such as the Law4Growth Congress, is proof that Katowice is a city where foreign investors are developing, but also Polish business. In Katowice, such companies as TAURON Polska Energia, PSE-South and Farmacol have their headquarters. We have companies that provide innovative products and technological solutions, such as Kopex or Famur. By engaging in the Forum's activities, we want to show that Katowice and the Upper Silesian Agglomeration are extraordinary human capital – active and entrepreneurial. We are trying to make the most of energy beyond 2,000,000 People living here, while showing others how to change wisely and develop," says Marcin Krupa, President of Katowice City.
Katowice in the centre of Polish business
The election of Katowice to the place where Congress will take place is not accidental. The capital of Upper Silesia is a symbol of the city, which can transform traditions of hard work into a modern approach to entrepreneurship and creating attractive conditions for economic development.
According to the last Global Metro Monitor report (2015) 4 , Katowice is developing economically faster than Warsaw, Helsinki, Berlin or Rome.
In this year's ranking the capital of Upper Silesia occupied 132 Place (per 300 cities analysed) among the fastest growing metropolitan areas in the world, including the annual rate of employment growth or the annual rate of real GDP per capita growth. Only Kraków received better notes from Polish centres.
Main experts of the Forum:
Dr Andrzej Dmowski - Managing Partner at Russell Bedford Poland, Henryk Siodmok – President of the Management Board of Atlas Group, Ryszard Florek – President of the Management Board of FAKRO, Marcin Krupa – President of Katowice City, Andrzej Arendarski – President of the National Chamber of Commerce, Andrzej Klesik – President of the Management Board of PZU SA, Mateusz Morawiecki – President of the Management Board of West Bank WBK, Wojciech Dziomdziora – Legal Advisor at Domanski Zakrzewski Palinka Chancellery, Andrzej Rzeplinski – President of the Constitutional Court, as well as many other experts.