The election programs of the parties for SMEs and start-ups

Start-ups are essential for the constant renewal of the SME business landscape; innovative start-ups bring important innovations to the market that seem too risky for established companies. The parties' plans for the Bundestag elections for SMEs and the promotion and facilitation of start-ups are therefore highly relevant. In this policy paper, the election programs of the parties potentially facing government participation are examined for their relevance for SMEs. Since SMEs are particularly burdened by bureaucracy and regulation due to their limited size, new regulatory projects and plans to reduce bureaucracy are also considered. Digitization plays a special role for further economic development, as the Corona pandemic has highlighted. Many small and medium-sized enterprises are laggards when it comes to digitization, but this also applies to the German administration when it comes to introducing eGovernment. Since the digital infrastructure and the digitization of the administration are also becoming increasingly important for SMEs, the plans of the parties in the digital area are also included in the study.