The new research budget, Horizon 2020, one of the biggest 'winners' under the draft MFF, is set to incorporate new instruments targeted at SMEs.
Horizon 2020's boosting finance to SMEs has long been a Commission priority, but behind the scenes disputes remain over how much to pump into general innovation projects – which could benefit all types of SMEs – or whether to focus on the Commission's so-called 'societal priorities', including themes such as healthy and active ageing.
How big do you need to be to get cash?
Gerhard Huemer, the director for economic and fiscal policy at the European Association of Craft, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (UEAPME), said that his member companies were positive about the higher budget and greater focus on innovation.
But he added: "How will the large SMEs fare compared with the smaller ones? The discussions are still ongoing at the moment. Will all SMEs be able to access the EU programmes, or will the only SMEs that benefit be those working within the societal challenges earmarked by the Commission?"
Richard Pelly, the chief executive of the European Investment Fund, told EurActiv that they are currently working on a pilot programme for Horizon 2020 which focuses on risk-sharing to benefit innovative SMEs. "The project will emerge at the end of the year and is a good example of a targeted response to the crisis," he said.
Pelly did not explain which sectors the pilots covered, but said: "With a view to the future and the next financial framework, this pilot programme is intended to develop into something bigger."
Under the Commission's MFF proposal, SMEs will also benefit from changes to the distribution methods of the EU's massive structural funds pool, but lobbyists are calling for more explicit mentions of SMEs within the proposal, fearing that otherwise SME claims will not be safeguarded.
Currently SMEs can gain access to structural funds through the Jeremie programme, administered by the EIF.
"With our current commitments, we are triggering a total leverage volume of about €40 billion across Europe. That figure is likely to increase over the next few years. It will do so because I expect the EIF to be mandated by an increasing number of parties to manage resources on their behalf – both on the national level (member states) as well as on the European level (by the European Commission and EIB)," Pelly said.
According to Danish MEP Bendt Bendtsen, who chairs the SME circle at the European People's Party (EPP), "everyone agrees that SMEs are the backbone but we need more funds to be available for investment in SMEs, and that means more of the structural funds."
"The most important thing for the SMEs is that structural funds and regional development funds should be capable of being directed towards SMEs. More needs to be directed to them and this should be explicitly mentioned within the MFF," Huemer insisted.
Access to EU funds is 'like a jungle'
Meanwhile smaller SMEs claim that they remain ostracised from the funding initiatives because of the complicated administrative procedure required to gain investments.
"EU funding is perceived by micro and small businesses as 'a jungle'. Most small business owners know that there is such a thing as EU funding but haven’t the faintest idea how to apply for it," said Patrick Gibbels of the European Small Business Alliance's Brussels representative.
Bendtsen said: "We need a one-stop shop and we wanted the Commission to make it simpler and to use the structural funds as financial instruments."
Jeremy Fleming
