European initiatives for other corporate forms

Chapter 13 examines a number of other initiatives to establish European-level company forms. The political opposition to the SE proposal did not discourage the European Commission from proposing three other legal forms in 1992, namely the European Mutual Society, the European Association and the European Cooperative Society. All three quickly ran into opposition from some and a lack of interest by most, with only the European Cooperative Society eventually being passed (in the wake of the SE legislation). Subsequent proposals for the European Private Company (SPE) in 2003 (and finally tabled in 2008) and the European Foundation in 2012 have run into similar controversies, showing very clearly the ‘red thread’ of concern that appears again and again with regard to impacts on national business and industrial relations systems and a lack of clear business need.