EPP Group wants €6.5 billion for SMEs and Single Market

22.01.2019 11:06

EPP Group wants €6.5 billion for SMEs and Single Market

Completing the Single Market

For the next long-term EU budget 2021-2027, MEPs want €6.5 billion allocated through the Single Market Programme for consumer protection and Europe's SMEs, as adopted today in the Internal Market and Consumer Protection Committee.

“The new Single Market Programme is going to be a very important tool to support the competitiveness of our industries, particularly SMEs. We want to make sure that the internal market functions in a harmonised manner and offers high-quality, safe products to all our citizens", said Inese Vaidere MEP, the EPP Group Spokeswoman on the topic after today’s vote.

The new Single Market Programme will ensure easier access to finance for small businesses and will be complimentary to €2 billion of investments specifically for SMEs from InvestEU. It will also promote human and animal health and welfare, and will establish the framework for financing European statistics.

“There's no doubt that the Single Market has already given so much to Europeans during its 25 years. With the new programme, we are going to give more support to SMEs, the backbone of the European economy. We have already seen the success of the COSME Programme and its benefits for SMEs. This new programme will further strengthen the governance of the EU's internal market that in the end will be a win-win situation for both businesses and consumers”, concluded Vaidere.

Note to editors

The EPP Group is the largest political group in the European Parliament with 217 Members from 28 Member States

Other related content