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Entrepreneurship and start-ups for more growth and better jobs in Europe EPP’s 10 Commitments

Resolution adopted at the EPP Congress, Dublin (Ireland), 6th -7th March 2014
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The European People’s Party believes that European start-ups and entrepreneurs can contribute significantly to transforming the European economy into a knowledge economy. This will lead to more growth and high quality jobs in Europe. We will stimulate and support creative entrepreneurs willing to take the risk to start-up a company through the following set of measures:
  1. The EPP will stimulate and encourage SMEs and entrepreneurs by simplification of rules. The SMEs should be given real opportunities to grow by commercializing their products and services freely across the Union’s internal market.
  2. The EPP will ensure that SMEs can operate all over Europe by formulating and promoting an E-corporation that will provide SMEs with access via mutual recognition, reduction of bureaucracy and establishment of a VAT one stop shop.
  3. The EPP supports necessary measures to assure SMEs liquidity and access to loans in all EU Member states, particularly through enhancing fixed loan interest rate availability to SMEs for example by utilizing European Investment Bank’s resources. We also want to diversify European SMEs and startups sources of financing and investment by promoting the creation of business Angel and Venture Capital Funds as well as private equity more generally.
  4. We will promote, enable and enhance the creation of startups through entrepreneurship support structures and measures, including access to funds, by incentivizing the formulation of business angel networks, business angel funds and venture capital funds.
  5. We will engage in ensuring that the criteria set by the Competitiveness Council on May 31st 2011 that EU Member States converge their national legal framework pertaining to the reduction of startup time for enterprises to 3 days and the reduction of the respective cost to 100 euros is transposed into practice; We will promote e-government as a measure to reduce the administrative burden and bureaucracy for the start-up of a company in Europe. We will promote interaction between citizens and businesses and the public authorities.
  6. The EPP will promote a comprehensive concept of entrepreneurship literacy in all levels of education aiming at acquiring an entrepreneurial mindset, transversal skills and competences on financial and entrepreneurial literacy. In this regard, the EPP is against stigmatization of non-fraudulent business failures and is promoting strongly a second chance for entrepreneurs.
  7. EPP Member Parties will promote the reform of social security systems and labor markets regulations in a way that stimulates job creation, added value employment and growth particularly through entrepreneurial activity.
  8. We will support the Project for a Self-Employed Statute. The projects' main objectives will be to provide systematic and unified regulations for self-employment in the European Union, to support the improvement of social and labor rights for entrepreneurs, and to articulate the necessary measures to support business start-ups, the sustainability of these companies and the preservation of pre-existing businesses. We will minimize barriers for investors and simplify the legal framework, so that entrepreneurs and Self-Employed can focus primarily on developing their businesses.
  9. We will modernize Europe's copyright regime and facilitate licensing, while ensuring a high level of protection of intellectual property rights and taking into account cultural diversity. We will step up measures for affordable Intellectual Property Rights for both SMEs and large companies through a unified European Patent, increasing the incentive for profitable innovation.
  10. We will continue our efforts in the area of innovation and research and intensify their efforts in commercializing research and innovation results via the creation of startups. We will grant special attention to the role of the public sector in enabling systemic innovations, especially in the clean-tech and biotech sectors.


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