The global economic crisis has highlighted the importance of high levels of technology and innovation.
Innovative enterprises, achieving rapid growth, attracting international investments and representing a driving force for sustainable development — understood as the ability to cope with the environmental, economic and social changes — have a broad impact both on overall productivity and on new job opportunities. Indeed, the innovative business activities, seeking alternative solutions, favour social challenges and help strengthen the thesis that sustainability may generate competitive advantages for companies.
The more a Government wants to ensure the birth, survival and competitiveness of innovative and sustainable firms, the better it has to diversify and reinforce the national entrepreneurship ecosystem. A suitable solution is to develop new rules that support them.
According to theoretical studies and empirical approaches, there is a link between taxation, development and sustainability. This view considers that profitable fiscal policies addressed to sustainability can achieve both resource efficiency and competitiveness. Besides, it explains why Italian Government — initially with the Decree-Law no. 179/2012 on “Further urgent measures for Italy’s economic growth”, converted into Law no. 221/2012 and then with several other actions, during the last six years — has designed and implemented a long-term and manifold strategy. It also has been careful to consider those firms that pursue a social goal or operate in the energy field.
In line with the previous assumption, tax rules represent the most important part of the reform. They consist of a set of advantages and incentives that, if conferred to undertakings by national public authorities, have to comply with the European Union's State aid rules.
Their potential is, also, emphasised by the provision of a work for equity scheme and of a regulatory regime of crowdfunding and by the interaction with measures like the Patent box, the Research and Development tax credit and the Allowance for corporate equity.
In this paper, we try to fill the existing gap in the Tax Law Italian literature on the synergy between the new tax incentives, development and sustainability, with the aim to frame the role of Italian tax policy in support of innovative entrepreneurship. Indeed, the Government has contributed in ensuring their growth due to a “progressive combined action”, not incurring the European ban on State aid.
The scientific methodology chosen to develop the research includes the following essential steps.
Initially, we analyse the Italian legislation to verify why it is compatible with the European rules. Next, we highlight its remarkable outcomes.
The previous steps allow us to underline the importance of the legislation, in terms of innovation and sustainability, and to formulate valuable suggestions for European policymakers and entrepreneurs.
These rules started to work better as soon as the Italian Government has periodically introduced some changes while evaluating their performance in connection with the market response. Consequently, future research could investigate further solutions for enhancing the effort done. It could, also, deepen the effectiveness of similar measures chosen by the other Member States.
Keywords: Entrepreneurship, Innovation, Sustainability, Tax policy, State aid
9d. Law and sustainability
