Council Conclusions on "Stimulating Entrepreneurship"
Date: 2004-04-06
Institutions: Council of the European Union
Subjects: European undertaking, action programme, aid to undertakings, business start-up, entrepreneurship

C 86/8

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

6.4.2004

I

(Information)

COUNCIL

COUNCIL CONCLUSIONS

on ‘Stimulating Entrepreneurship’

(2004/C 86/02)

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

1. RECALLING the conclusions of various European Councils (1) calling for action to improve entrepre-

neurship and framework conditions for small businesses;

2. RECOGNISING that entrepreneurship is a major driver of innovation, competitiveness, employment and
growth and that encouraging and training more people to become entrepreneurs are key requirements
for the achievement of the Lisbon objectives;

3. WELCOMES the fact that the Commission's communication ‘Action Plan: The European agenda for
Entrepreneurship’ identifies principal areas where the environment for entrepreneurship needs to be
improved, as well as a range of actions to create a more favourable environment for and to give a
strong impetus to entrepreneurship by raising its general profile and WELCOMES the progress achieved
in implementing the European Charter for small enterprises;

4. STRESSES that within the context of the integrated approach to competitiveness, there are policy
priorities including access to finance, training/education, and better regulation, which are crucial to
the success of the relevant Community Action Plans and measures;

5. Considering the urgent need for concrete results to deliver these policy priorities, CALLS ON the
Commission to set out a more ambitious timetable for undertaking these actions and ENCOURAGES
Member States to exploit best practices,
in particular those identified through the open method of
coordination;

6.

INVITES Member States and the Commission, within their respective competencies, to intensify efforts
and take early action in:

— improving education and training for entrepreneurship at all levels;

— improving the regulatory environment, building on the ‘Better Regulation’ Action Plan; the impact
informed by
of proposed legislation on small businesses and entrepreneurs should be assessed,
systematic consultation; the cumulative effects of existing legislation should also be assessed, in
order to reduce the greater relative burden on small businesses;

— supporting and facilitating access to finance for entrepreneurs, in particular with regard to start-ups,
transfers, innovative businesses and entrepreneurs in under-represented groups; concerns about the
implications of the Basel II Accord for small businesses should also be taken into account;

(1) Including Cardiff 1998, Lisbon and Feira 2000, and Brussels 2003.

6.4.2004

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 86/9

— ensuring that the State aids framework is appropriately targeted towards addressing market failures

that inhibit entrepreneurial and innovative activity;

— enhancing mechanisms to strengthen the dialogue between entrepreneurs and policy makers, and

improving access to information;

— raising the profile of successful entrepreneurs and of entrepreneurship policies, including an exam-

ination of the feasibility of establishing a ‘European Centres of Enterprise’ awards scheme;

— identifying and jointly agreeing indicators of performance and progress as a basis for the subsequent
voluntary setting of targets for increased entrepreneurial activity, taking into account global markets;

— examining the European Charter for small enterprises in the light of priorities identified in the
Commission's Entrepreneurship Action Plan, within the same timeframe as the mid-term review of
in order to ensure that it reflects in a coherent way the specific needs of
the Lisbon strategy,
entrepreneurs and small businesses in an enlarged European Union;

— streamlining all reporting arrangements between the Member States and the Commission in respect

of the Charter and other related instruments.

COUNCIL CONCLUSIONS

on the competitiveness of business-related services

(2004/C 86/03)

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

1. RECALLING

— the crucial role of services in the European economy and their potential for productivity growth and
employment creation, in particular in the context of achieving the objectives of the Lisbon strategy;

— the efforts being made in the context of the integrated strategy for competitiveness for improving
industry and business in general, promoting secure and favourable

the competitiveness of
framework conditions and encouraging entrepreneurship;

2. WELCOMES the Commission's communication on ‘the Competitiveness of Business-related Services (1)
and their contribution to the performance of European enterprises’ (2) and RECOGNISES that
the
measures identified by the Commission could contribute to increasing productivity growth and
employment;

3. RECOGNISES that the proposed framework directive on services in the Internal Market constitutes an
important element in improving the competitiveness of business-related services and UNDERTAKES to
examine this proposal as a matter of priority;

4. WELCOMES, therefore, the intention of the Commission to establish a goal-oriented European Forum on
business-related services for the purpose of effectively consulting stakeholders and other experts in its
development of an Action Plan for business-related services;

(1) As defined in the Commission's communication, business-related services consist of four major groups of activities,
namely business services, distributive trades, network services and financial services, performing in different market
conditions.

(2) Doc. 15933/03 COMPET 82 MI 316 IND 182 ECO 270.