SPD on the economy

The SPD wants to push at the federal level for small and mid-sized companies to be exempt from reporting obligations for two years. After that, a review would determine which obligations are actually necessary.

Companies have to send many reports to the government. The SPD wants to stop this for small and mid-sized companies. The stop should last two years. After that, the SPD wants to check which reports are really needed.

The proposal is aimed at the federal government and covers all reporting obligations for small and mid-sized companies. After the two years, an evaluation would show which of them are needed. The SPD points to earlier steps in the state, including a bureaucracy check and a first law to reduce red tape. In cutting red tape, the party says it wants to strengthen trust.

The SPD wants to create a development bank owned by the state. It is meant to make funding programs more flexible and better suited to the regional economy.

The SPD wants the state to have its own development bank. A development bank gives money and cheap loans for certain goals. The support should fit local companies better. Families should also get cheap loans.

The new bank is supposed to make funding programs more flexible and tailor them more closely to the regional economy. It is also meant to help families buy a home through loans at reduced interest rates. In addition, the SPD plans a new state strategy for data and artificial intelligence that would pool all AI expertise.

The SPD wants to expand Rostock's overseas port and speed up development of the energy ports in Rostock, Sassnitz-Mukran and Lubmin. The state is to take a more active role and commits to its shipyards.

The SPD wants to expand the ports in the state. The overseas port in Rostock should get bigger. The state should help more with the ports. The SPD also wants to support the shipyards. Shipyards are places where ships are built.

The party sees opportunities at the ports beyond shipbuilding, such as building converter platforms for offshore wind power. Civilian and military shipbuilding, logistics and value creation around the ports are to be developed further. Federal funds for regional economic structure (GRW) are to keep being used strategically for this. The SPD expects the federal government to secure rail ferry capability in Rostock and Sassnitz. It also stresses rail links to the hinterland, including renovation of the Vorpommern main line, and closer coordination among permitting authorities.

The SPD wants to continue the "Industrieland Mecklenburg-Vorpommern 2030" concept beyond 2030. The goals are a more diversified economy and well-paid industrial jobs; to that end, the state is to market itself more actively to investors, companies and skilled workers.

The SPD wants more industry in the state. There is a plan for this until 2030. The SPD wants to extend the plan. This should create well-paid jobs. The state should advertise itself more as a place to work.

According to the platform, the concept is backed jointly by politics, business and employees and will continue to be developed with business and unions. New jobs are to come with collective agreements, fair wages, worker participation and local training. Highly innovative companies in particular should find a home in the state. In its marketing, the SPD wants to highlight advantages such as available commercial land, green power, quality of life and the location in Europe, both at home and abroad. The state is also meant to become more attractive for new businesses, start-ups and university spin-offs.

The SPD wants to move away from an economy that mainly consumes fossil raw materials toward a bio-based circular economy. Value creation from the field to the finished product is to stay in the state, which is meant to benefit rural areas in particular.

The SPD wants to use less oil, gas and coal as raw materials. Plants and leftovers should be the basis instead. This is called the bioeconomy. The products should be made in the state. This should bring jobs to rural areas.

The state already has a bioeconomy strategy. Beyond that, the SPD plans a carbon and circular economy strategy to be drawn up with agriculture, the waste sector, biogas plant operators and universities; its infrastructure projects are to feed into state and regional planning. Support is planned for new food production processes, better use of residues, and building and packaging materials made from renewable raw materials. The structures of the existing WIR! alliances are to continue in order to win federal and EU funding. The platform cites the Anklam sugar factory as an example of a regional cluster.

The SPD wants to give targeted support to small and medium-sized businesses and the skilled trades and to make funding applications simpler. The program argues that small firms in particular struggle to find the resources for digitalization, climate neutrality and innovation.

The SPD wants to help small companies and skilled trades. Applying for state funding should become easier. Companies should get good advice. There should also be help with artificial intelligence.

The state's business development agency is to remain strong and offer easily accessible advice that prepares firms for funding applications. Funding procedures are to be streamlined as far as EU and federal rules permit. Support is planned for practical AI applications, energy advice and the business succession center. Small and medium-sized firms should be able to take part in public tenders issued by the state and municipalities. At the federal level, the SPD wants to push for affordable energy prices for trades and industry.

The SPD wants tourism levies to give visitors something tangible in return, mainly through guest cards with discounts and free local public transit. People living in a vacation region should be able to use these offers at no extra charge and should not pay a visitor tax in neighboring towns. Tourist municipalities should also be better placed to invest in their infrastructure.

Tourists pay a fee in many towns. In return, they should get a guest card. With the card, they ride buses and trains for free. People who live in the region should get these offers too. Locals should not pay a visitor tax in the next town.

Guest cards are to be available in paper and digital form and include discounts on things like cultural venues, swimming pools and bike rentals, plus free use of local transit. Within a region such as Usedom, Rügen or the Darß, residents should have access to the same offers. Together with municipalities, tourism professionals and local businesses, the SPD wants to prepare tourist communities for investment in their infrastructure. Harbors, piers and rest stops for water hikers that are used by tourists are to receive more attention. The federal government, the state and municipalities are to fund tourism in a stable and lasting way.

The SPD wants to review and rewrite the state's tourism strategy together with the industry. The aim is for Mecklenburg-Vorpommern to become Germany's most popular travel destination with the best value for money. This includes higher quality, year-round offerings and better conditions for employees.

The SPD wants a new plan for tourism. Tourism companies should help write it. Vacations in the state should be good and not too expensive. There should be things to do all year. Workers should get better training.

The state's new tourism company is to be closely involved. The plan includes quality initiatives in the off-season as well, support for year-round offerings and partnerships with sports associations and cultural professionals, among others. A concept for a tourism academy for further training is to be developed with the industry, and the SPD expects the federal government to run a recruitment drive for foreign workers tailored to the sector. Cultural and city tourism, health offerings in spa towns, and nature experiences and sustainable offerings are to be strengthened. The program names wages, working conditions and infrastructure as the foundation, supported with EU, federal and state funds.

The SPD wants to designate sites for technology-oriented companies and build them up with regional competence centers. These are meant to connect research, the regional economy and practical application, working closely with universities and research institutes.

The SPD wants to pick places for new tech companies. Centers there should help the companies. The centers work with universities. This should bring new firms and skilled workers to the state.

The competence centers are to help companies build strategic supply chains, attract new firms and secure skilled workers. The program names focus areas including fusion technology, aerospace, robotics, autonomous mobility, digitalization, medical technology, energy storage and new propulsion systems. Universities and non-university institutes are to serve as partners for development and technology transfer. The sites are meant to carry research results into rural areas as well.

The SPD wants to strengthen and connect advisory services for new businesses and add easily accessible venture and equity capital to the funding mix. Fast-growing young companies, known as scale-ups, are to get their own funding and financing tools. Digital start-ups, e-sports and streaming should also find a place in the state's economy.

The SPD wants to help new companies. They should get good advice. They should also get start-up money more easily. Fast-growing young companies should get help too. Digital firms and e-sports should be able to grow in the state.

The advisory structures for founders that have grown up across the state are to be further strengthened and linked. Low-threshold venture and equity capital is to be added. Tailored instruments are planned for scale-ups; the program sees growth potential in this and a draw for young skilled workers. The SPD wants to include digital start-ups as well as e-sports and streaming offerings in economic development.

The SPD wants to keep enough land available for commerce and industry through forward-looking planning so that companies can continue to set up quickly. At the same time, state marketing under the slogan “MV tut gut” (MV does you good) is to promote the location's advantages at home and abroad.

Companies need space. The state should plan enough land for companies. Then new companies can come quickly. The state should also advertise itself. The slogan is “MV tut gut,” meaning MV does you good.

Strategic land development is meant to keep site-selection procedures fast and help municipalities with their economic development. The SPD wants to examine whether data-based and AI-supported analysis can help find companies and industries that fit the state. State marketing, the state tourism company, the business development agency “Invest in MV” and agricultural marketing are to work closely together. The strategic direction is to be coordinated with the main stakeholders and updated.

The SPD wants to make planning and permitting procedures for companies faster, simpler and more reliable, including through digitalization. For large industrial and infrastructure projects, a central state government task force is to bundle the procedures.

Companies often wait a long time for permits. The SPD wants to speed this up. Building applications should be possible online across the state. A central working group should handle big projects. Local people should still have a say.

The plan calls for clear responsibilities, binding timelines, fewer duplicate reviews, standardized documents and visible case status. Digital building applications are to be rolled out statewide as quickly as possible. The state government's interministerial working group is to be expanded into a cross-departmental task force for new sites and expansions and used more often, for example in procedures under the Federal Immission Control Act. Participation, transparency and local acceptance are to remain preconditions. The SPD wants to continue modernizing the state administration.

The SPD wants to expand the state's foreign trade relations over the next five years to open new markets for companies and secure jobs. A cross-industry concept is to bundle the individual measures. The focus is on the democratic countries around the Baltic Sea.

Companies from the state should sell more abroad. The SPD wants an overall plan for this. Small companies get advice and funding. The democratic countries on the Baltic Sea matter most.

Small and medium-sized firms are to get help entering foreign markets through advice, networks and funding programs, including for trade fair appearances in Germany and abroad. International exchange is to grow in sectors such as renewable energy, the maritime economy and environmental technology. Business will be involved in drawing up the concept. The focus is on Poland, the Nordic countries and the Baltic states, with more distant destinations added where companies are interested. The program relies on fair trade relations and partnerships in Europe and worldwide.

The SPD wants to expand the state's seaports as sites for the energy transition. Manufacturers that rely on renewable energy are to settle there and create value locally.

The SPD wants to expand the ports in the state. The ports should become important for the energy supply. New companies and jobs should come there. This is about Rostock, Sassnitz-Mukran and Lubmin.

The ports are to become sites for offshore wind, hydrogen and clean energy supply for ships. As an example, the program cites the planned construction of converter platforms in Rostock-Warnemünde, large transformer stations for wind farms at sea. The SPD expects jobs and a stronger role for the state's economy in the Baltic Sea region.

The SPD wants to expand the state's ports so that industry can settle there and secure jobs are created. It calls on the federal government to provide at least 500 million euros a year on a permanent basis for all German sea and inland ports.

The SPD wants to expand the ports in the state. Companies should settle there. This should create new jobs. The federal government should give a lot of money for ports every year.

According to the program, expansion includes modern cargo-handling facilities, space that can be enlarged, and good road and rail links. The sites are to be developed strategically. The federal government is also asked to speed up planning and approval procedures. Port logistics should run on reliable digital processes. The SPD regards the ports as important for industry, the energy transition, security and foreign trade.

The SPD wants to strengthen the cultural and creative industries as an economic factor. Film funding is to be expanded, and the state's still small gaming industry is to get more support. The party wants to examine a statewide program for studios, rehearsal rooms and venues.

The SPD wants to strengthen creative jobs in the state. These include film, music, design and video games. Film funding should grow. Video game companies should get more help. Artists should find more spaces to work in.

Film festivals and movie theaters, especially in rural areas, are to keep receiving support. The SPD wants to examine how galleries, art associations, publishers and artists can present themselves better at trade fairs. Networks and spaces for creatives and start-ups are to be strengthened. Residency programs, national and international exchange, and cooperation with universities and research institutions will continue to be supported.

The SPD wants to turn Mecklenburg-Vorpommern into a location for resource efficiency, recycling technology and raw material recovery. To that end, the circular economy is to be promoted and companies in this field helped to set up in the state.

Raw materials should be used more than once. This is called a circular economy. The SPD wants to bring companies to the state that recycle waste. These companies should get help.

The program sees the sustainable use of resources as one of the major economic tasks of the century. The state is to seize the opportunities this offers and establish itself as an innovative location. Support is meant for companies working in recycling, reuse and the recovery of raw materials.

The SPD wants to strengthen the state's food industry, which it describes as one of the most important sectors of the economy. New, innovative companies are to emerge, and small processors are to get help developing and marketing their products.

The SPD wants to help companies that make food. Many of these companies are small. They should get help when they develop new products. Very small companies in the countryside should also get money.

The program sets the goal of new, highly innovative companies along the entire value chain. Micro-businesses in rural areas are to receive funding in order to strengthen village structures. The SPD backs the Center for Nutrition and Food Technology in Neubrandenburg as a research cluster. The marketing association of the agricultural and food industry (AMV) is to keep receiving support. The program justifies this with the importance of the sector, which it says employs 18,000 people, and with demand for regional products from residents and visitors.