CELEX: 52004XG0406(01)
Language: en
Date: 2004-04-06
Title: Council Conclusions on "Stimulating Entrepreneurship"

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52004XG0406(01)

Council Conclusions on "Stimulating Entrepreneurship"  

Official Journal C 086 , 06/04/2004 P. 0008 - 0009

Council Conclusionson "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 entrepreneurship 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 of proposed legislation on small businesses and entrepreneurs should be assessed, informed by 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;- 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 examination 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 the Lisbon strategy, in order to ensure that it reflects in a coherent way the specific needs of 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.(1) Including Cardiff 1998, Lisbon and Feira 2000, and Brussels 2003.