European Parliament resolution on the Commission communication „Risk capital: Implementation of the action plan - Proposals for moving forward”  (COM(1999) 493 — C5-0320/1999 — 1999/2208(COS))
Date: 2000-10-03
Institutions: Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs, European Parliament
Subjects: EU financing, European patent, action programme, early-stage capital, innovation, investment promotion, new technology, type of business

22.6.2001

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 178/61

Tuesday 3 October 2000

European Parliament legislative resolution on the proposal for a European Parliament and Council
directive amending Council Directive 96/53/EC laying down for certain road vehicles circulating
within the Community the maximum authorised dimensions in national and international traffic
and the maximum authorised weights in international traffic (COM(2000) 137 ’ C5-0164/2000 ’
2000/0060(COD))

(Codecision procedure: first reading)

The European Parliament,

(cid:19) having regard to the Commission proposal

to the European Parliament and the Council

(COM(2000) 137),

(cid:19) having regard to Article 251(2) and Article 71 of the EC Treaty, pursuant to which the Commission

submitted the proposal to Parliament (C5-0164/2000),

(cid:19) having regard to Rule 67 of its Rules of Procedure,

(cid:19) having regard to the report of the Committee on Regional Policy, Transport and Tourism (A5-0231/

2000),

1.

Approves the Commission proposal as amended;

Asks to be consulted again should the Commission intend to amend its proposal substantially or

2.
replace it with another text;

3.

Instructs its President to forward its position to the Council and Commission.

9. Risk capital

A5-0235/2000

European Parliament resolution on the Commission communication ‘Risk capital: Implementation
of the action plan ’ Proposals for moving forward’ (COM(1999) 493 ’ C5-0320/1999 ’ 1999/
2208(COS))

The European Parliament,

(cid:19) having regard to the Commission communication (COM(1999) 493 (cid:19) C5-0320/1999),

(cid:19) having regard to the Conclusions of the Extraordinary European Council in Lisbon on 23/24 March

2000,

(cid:19) having regard to its resolution of 4 May 1999 (1) on the Commission Communication on Financial

services: Building a framework for action (COM(1998) 625 (cid:19) C4-0688/1998),

(cid:19) having regard to the initiative by the European Investment Bank, ‘Innovation 2000: Towards a Europe

based on innovation and knowledge’,

(cid:19) having regard to its resolution of 18 May 2000 on the Commission’s recommendation for the Broad
Guidelines of the Economic Policies of the Member States and the Community (drawn up pursuant to
Article 99(2) of the Treaty establishing the European Community) (2),

(cid:19) having regard to the Communication from the Commission, ‘e-Europe: An Information Society for all
(cid:19) Progress Report (cid:19) For the Special European Council on employment, economic reforms and social
cohesion (cid:19) Towards a Europe based on innovation and knowledge’ (cid:19) Lisbon, 23 and 24 March 2000
(COM(2000) 130),

(1) OJ C 279, 1.10.1999, p. 96.
(2) Texts Adopted, Item 3.

C 178/62

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

22.6.2001

Tuesday 3 October 2000

(cid:19) having regard to its resolution of 9 March 1999 on risk capital: a key to job creation in the European

Union (cid:19) April 1998 (1),

(cid:19) having regard to its resolution of 13 April 2000 on the Commission’s communication, ‘Towards a

single market for supplementary pensions’ (2),

(cid:19) having regard to Rule 47(1) of its Rules of Procedure,

(cid:19) having regard to the report of the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs and the opinion of

the Committee on Employment and Social Affairs (A5-0235/2000),

A. whereas the Commission Communication provides a timely reminder that while risk capital is devel-
oping in Europe, the amount and allocation of risk capital remains sub-optimal compared to the Uni-
ted States and the overall gap is widening, and a number of barriers remain,

B. whereas the development of risk capital is essential for job creation, as small and medium sized enter-
prises (SMEs) account for 66 % of total employment in the Community, and a recent study has shown
that between 80 and 90 % of funds raised from venture capital go towards hiring people,

C. whereas the lack of an integrated, pan-European capital market and regulatory barriers such as invest-
ment restrictions and tax differences hindering the development of European supplementary pension
funds, as well as the need for a single prospectus for pan-European capital raising combined with a
single set of international accounting standards, have hitherto been key factors holding back the devel-
opment of risk capital,

D. whereas it is to be hoped that the current wave of consolidation of European markets and exchanges
will contribute to a reduction in the fragmentation of European capital markets, thereby freeing up
capital for investment in job-creating, high-growth SMEs,

E. whereas the Commission must accelerate the completion of an integrated pan-European capital market
as provided for in the Financial Services Action Plan through measures such as cross-border prospec-
tuses and a single set of international accounting standards,

F. whereas the introduction of the euro has already led to the diversification of investment portfolios as
investors increasingly look beyond their national borders for a return, and this process can only be
enhanced by the emergence of pan-European pension funds subject to prudent-man style regulation
and flexible investment strategy,

G. whereas other barriers to the development of risk capital and innovative SMEs remain in the form of
the lack of an entrepreneurial culture, insufficient qualified human resources and a paucity of high-
tech SMEs,

H. whereas public authorities, both at the EU and national levels, have a key role to play in addressing
these barriers, as well as in providing direct financial support to encourage venture capital in areas
where the private sector would otherwise be reluctant to intervene,

I. whereas evidence from the US suggests that informal venture capitalists such as business angels and
incubators invest up to five times more than formal venture capitalists, and this trend is intensifying,

J. whereas at the same time one of the more important sources of risk capital for small businesses is
their own profits, so that favourable, less complicated rules on taxation of small businesses and their
owners are of great importance in promoting the propensity to invest,

(1) OJ C 175, 21.6.1999, p. 16.
(2)
‘Texts Adopted’, Item 23.

22.6.2001

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 178/63

Tuesday 3 October 2000

K. whereas multinational companies, especially in the information technology and content industries, and
the biotechnology and healthcare sectors, also have a responsibility to play a central role in supporting
the development of the innovative start-ups which will grow into the success stories of the future;
whereas the Member States should provide incentives for them to do so in order to avoid a ‘brain-
drain’ of European talent to the United States in search of capital,

L. whereas despite the wide range of funding instruments available to support risk capital, SMEs and
entrepreneurs seeking funding for their new ventures continue to face difficulties in obtaining easy
access to information about funding opportunities, public support schemes such as tax incentives
and training opportunities, and the importance of securing patent protection for their designs and
inventions,

M. whereas the European system of patents is too complex and expensive, so that about two-thirds of
innovative European SMEs do not register patents, making reform of the European patent system all
the more urgent to enable SMEs to achieve the benefits of pan-European, low-cost and easily accessi-
ble patents,

N. whereas the forthcoming Commission proposal for a Community Patent will play a key role in mak-

ing it easier and cheaper for companies to file a patent,

O. whereas SMEs continue to be burdened by the excessive costs and administrative procedures involved
in setting up a company, with the consequent difficulties in setting up a new business which bank-
ruptcy entails,

P. whereas training measures and education are needed to assist the development of an enterprise culture
and encourage a willingness to increase the level of risk-taking in business; whereas education should
be adapted to the particular needs of SMEs; whereas it is just as important to provide practical assis-
tance in the form of guidance for business management as to provide finance; whereas the importance
of guidance for entrepreneurs should therefore be stressed,

Q. whereas the recent adoption of the Directive on Late Payments in Commercial Transactions will help
to remove one of the main causes of business failures amongst SMEs, by tackling the problem of late
payments,

R. whereas the Commission Communication rightly emphasises the importance of identifying best prac-
tice in supporting risk capital at Member State level, and the role that benchmarking can play in
spreading best practice,

1. Welcomes the fact that the Action Plan proposes concrete measures to remove the remaining barriers
to a genuinely pan-European market for risk capital in the European Union by 2003 as outlined at the
Lisbon summit, which will greatly contribute to job creation and increased competitiveness and productiv-
ity, and thereby also to supporting growth;

2.
Recognises that while progress has been made, with rapid growth in European venture capital over
the past five years, European investment in venture capital remains considerably behind that in the US,
particularly in the high-growth sectors of information technology and content industries, biotechnology,
social services and healthcare, and there are wide regional and sectoral variations;

3.
Notes that, at the Extraordinary European Council held in Lisbon on 23/24 March 2000, specific
reference was made to the need to improve conditions for setting up undertakings in the field of high
technologies by using risk capital and to redirect funds to other risk-capital initiatives proposed by the EIB;

4.
Urges the Commission and the Council to bring forward and apply as soon as possible a proposal for
a Directive on Supplementary Pension Funds, as well as a proposal on the taxation of pension funds, with
a view to securing their adoption at the earliest possible opportunity;

5.
Agrees with the Commission that properly targeted, public direct financial support can act as a cat-
alyst in stimulating the provision of risk capital for innovative companies, especially in fields where private
investment is lacking and on condition that competition is not distorted;

C 178/64

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

22.6.2001

Tuesday 3 October 2000

Calls on the Commission to begin an ongoing dialogue with all interested parties,

6.
including the
European Parliament, the Council, the social partners, the EIB and the European Investment Fund (EIF),
with regard to the funding instruments currently available to support risk capital;

7.
Asks the EIB to focus in particular on innovative instruments tailored to the needs of the knowledge
economy, and to clarify how its Innovation 2000 proposals will be carried through; further calls on the
European Investment Bank to clarify the respective roles and responsibilities of the EIB and the EIF, and to
focus on providing incentives to venture capital funds to invest in higher-risk ventures, by taking on board
an appropriate share of the risk of default; urges the EIB to bring forward proposals in this regard by the
end of this year;

8.
Urges the EIB, the EIF and the Commission to broaden their support for risk capital investment to a
broader range of institutions with a more innovative range of instruments (such as micro-credits), includ-
ing informal venture capitalists such as business angels and incubators, as well as credit unions, trade
unions and cooperative banks, with a view to supporting SMEs from a wide range of sectors as well as
high-tech companies;

9.
Calls on the Commission and the Member States to address the shortage of seed and early stage
capital, as lack of start-up equity is a major barrier to start-up and developing companies throughout the
Union;

10.
Emphasises the need for a ‘community-up’ approach to risk capital projects which includes those in
less favoured regions, and which dovetails with the work of regional development agencies and the sup-
port offered by the EU regional funds to ensure that ‘risk capital clusters’ are developed throughout the
regions of Europe;

11.
Understands that it is difficult to estimate the number of jobs created, both directly and indirectly,
by risk capital investment, but nevertheless urges the Commission to carry out an economic study of the
likely employment effects with a view to monitoring these on an ongoing basis;

12.
Emphasises the importance of reducing the costs and administrative procedures involved in setting
up a company, while maintaining appropriate environmental assessment of new investment, and in this
context welcomes the decision of the Lisbon Extraordinary European Council to call for a benchmarking
exercise in this area;

13.
Encourages the Member States to introduce taxation systems which promote innovation at early
stages of development, devise taxation systems which benefit private individuals wishing to invest capital
in businesses and promote innovative employee ownership by means of more favourable and simplified
taxation rules concerning, for example, share options;

Advocates an improvement in the schemes for employee ownership linked to codetermination

14.
mechanisms such as stock options;

15.
Stresses the need to provide SMEs with high-quality, easily accessible information about access to
risk capital, and therefore urges the Commission to replicate the success of the EU online public procure-
ment initiative, SIMAP (Système d’information pour les marchés publics), by financially supporting the creation
of a ‘one stop shop’ risk capital web site to provide a single access point for information about projects
seeking risk capital and sources of EU and Member State funding for SMEs;

16.
Reiterates the value of a life-long learning approach to education and training, notably in informa-
tion technology, entrepreneurial skills and educational multimedia products and services, and urges the
Commission to help SMEs commercialise research funded through the Fifth Framework Programme and
to strengthen the European Union’s support to initiatives such as business angels networks, technology
parks and university incubators;

17.
Supports strongly initiatives such as mentoring, which have a key role to play in involving socially
excluded communities in start-up and risk capital projects, and recommends the spread of good practices
such as the Prince’s Trust in the UK;

22.6.2001

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 178/65

Tuesday 3 October 2000

18.
Urges the Commission and the Member States, within their respective areas of competence and in
consultation with the European Parliament, to consider measures to reduce the stigma of bankruptcy,
possibly including a moratorium on debt recovery where the liquidator determines that no fraudulent or
illegal practices were involved and the business in question can continue trading; calls on the Commission
to facilitate the sharing of best practice in this area, with a view to the elaboration of a recommendation;

19.
Urges the rapid adoption of the forthcoming Commission proposal for a Directive on the Commu-
nity Patent, and calls on the Commission to support the creation of an EU-wide online patents database
linked to the proposed risk capital website, and to launch an information campaign to provide SMEs with
information about the importance of securing patent protection for their designs and how to obtain a
patent;

20.
Asks the Commission and the Council to promote innovative software protection models such as
the General Public Licence in Europe in order to support the development of open source software and to
foster the provision of risk capital for entrepreneurs engaging in this field;

21.
States its concern about recent developments in patenting which either hinder the free circulation
of scientific information (patenting of data bases, mathematical formulae, software codes etc.) or patent
natural resources such as genes and plants without any innovative character;

22.

Calls on the Commission to develop risk capital initiatives in the accession countries;

23.
Calls on the Commission to bring forward by the end of 2000 a follow-up Communication on the
Implementation of the Risk Capital Action Plan, setting out the benchmarks agreed with Member States to
implement the Action Plan and proposals to ensure an integrated,
joined up approach to risk capital,
bringing together all Community instruments in a coherent manner; further calls on the Commission to
report back regularly to the European Parliament and the Council on progress made in reaching these
benchmarks and rationalising the EU framework for risk capital;

24.

Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council and Commission.

10. Charter of fundamental rights

B5-0767/2000

European Parliament resolution on the European Union Charter of Fundamental Rights

The European Parliament,

(cid:19) having regard to its resolution of 16 March 2000 on the drafting of a European Union Charter of

Fundamental Rights (1),

A. whereas the Convention retains sole responsibility for drafting the Charter up until the moment when

it is proclaimed,

Proposes, in line with the position it expounded when the Convention began its work, that, at its
1.
meeting in Biarritz, the European Council call on the Intergovernmental Conference to consider the text of
the Charter adopted by the Convention and ways of incorporating it into the Treaty with a view to a
decision being taken at the European Council meeting in Nice;

Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the governments and parliaments of

2.
the Member States, the Commission, the Convention and the other Community institutions.

(1)

‘Texts Adopted’, Item 4.