Supporting the single market beyond 2020

Briefing 03-06-2021

The single market programme is a new, dedicated €3.7 billion (in 2018 prices) or €4.2 billion (in current prices) programme for the 2021-2027 period supporting the single market. It is particularly aimed at empowering and protecting consumers, and enabling Europe's many small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to take better advantage of a well-functioning single market. On 3 May 2021, the Regulation establishing the programme entered into force, with retroactive application from 1 January 2021. The new programme aims to strengthen and streamline the governance of the EU's internal market. It will support the competitiveness of enterprises, and promote human, animal and plant health and a safe food chain, as well as financing European statistics to provide reliable data relevant to the single market. The proposal consolidates and streamlines a wide range of activities that were previously financed separately, and bundles them into one programme. The aim is to create benefits in terms of flexibility, simplification and synergies, and eliminate overlaps.