Brussels, 23 May 2006

FINAL A6-0180/2006
12.5.2006 Type of Procedure: Codecision procedure (first reading)
REPORT on the proposal for a decision of the European Parliament and of the Council establishing a Competitiveness and Innovation Framework Programme (2007-2013)

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Your draftsman welcomes this initiative to bring greater coherence and synergy between the relevant Community programmes and instruments.

The Framework Programme is to run from 2007 until 2013 with a budget of EUR 4,21 billion. It will comprise 3 sub-programmes:

the Entrepreneurship and Innovation Programme,

the ICT (information and communication technology) Policy Support Programme,

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the Intelligent Energy - Europe Programme. Your draftsman recognises the important role played by the SMEs in the EU economy. Therefore, he welcomes the fact that SMEs are at the core of the new Programme and strategy. The specific programmes and instruments should facilitate adjustment of companies to structural change, encourage a favourable for entrepreneurship and enterprise cooperation, with particular attention to SMEs, and foster better exploitation of the innovative potential of enterprises. The Community must also equip itself with a sound analytical basis to support policy making in the fields of SMEs, entrepreneurship, innovation and competitiveness in industrial sectors. Such a basis should add value to the information available at national level in these fields. The Community should provide for the common development of competitiveness strategies for industrial and service sectors. The Community should also promote best practices in relation to an entrepreneurial environment and culture, including corporate social responsibility and equal gender opportunity, and to promote the emergence of young entrepreneurs. The Entrepreneurship and Innovation programme should respond to the changing financing needs of SMEs, including the need for proximity financing and their adaptation to the new financial environment whilst avoiding market distortions. Your draftsperson has suggested some amendments to the Commission proposal, mainly introducing employment and social policy elements.

Committee on Industry, Research and Energy - Rapporteur: Jorgo Chatzimarkakis - Draftsman: Markus Ferber - Draftsman: Werner Langen - Draftsman: José Albino Silva Peneda - Draftsman: Guido Sacconi - Draftswoman: Britta Thomsen

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