EU Advocacy » Y 2000 Declaration » Entrepreneurship
Millennium Declaration:
Our vision for ENTREPRENEURSHIP
Entrepreneurship is the most important value in a society requiring the creation of wealth. A successful and free society encourages entrepreneurship and competition. If a society stifles this, it simply fails to maintain the necessary creativity and initiative spirit to answer evolving human needs and desires through processes of innovation.
Small Business Entrepreneurs are the natural pool of entrepreneurship in a society. Their strength is innovation and flexibility.
Learning from the past
Entrepreneurship has not so far been properly encouraged in most European countries, although entrepreneurship is now high on the agenda of policy-makers. Entrepreneurship has not yet been established as an important value in the EU. Too many public initiatives provide disincentives for existing entrepreneurs launching new projects and potential entrepreneurs creating new enterprises.
Sensational media stories of a few selling their businesses at a vast profit should not obscure the reality that Europe needs more entrepreneurs that take risks, establish and maintain stable and successful businesses which provide value and lifetime service to the community. It is unfortunate that government’s ability to suppress and suffocate entrepreneurship to date far exceeds their ability to stimulate and engender confidence for the future.
Key policy recommendations for the future
- Establish a more ambitious programme to cut red tape. This enables entrepreneurs to concentrate more on their core business activities. This would additionally have the benefit of creating the right environment for start up companies.
- Implement an equitable fiscal policy for small entrepreneurs on a par with large corporate business.
- Make unlawful any distortions, including social, which exist between self-employed entrepreneurs and incorporated entrepreneurs.
- Encourage competition between EU member states to implement best practice on EU Enterprise Policy, as suggested on the Best Procedure of 2001.
Page last updated: 07/11/2001 7:14:31 PM