Brussels, 16/11/2011 (Agence Europe) - Eight member states of the European Union (France, the United Kingdom, Germany, Italy, Spain, Sweden, the Netherlands and Finland), which represent more than 70% of the population of the European Union and more than 80% of its economy, wrote to the European Commission on Wednesday 16 November calling for the ITER (nuclear fusion reactor) and GMES (European initiative for global monitoring for the environment and security) projects to be paid for out of the European Union budget.
The research ministers of these eight countries also called for a strengthening of the cost control measures for ITER and GMES. They argue that it is vital for them to be delivered according to the budgets and timescales laid down and for those responsible for the management to be accountable.
In its communication on the forthcoming multi-annual financial framework of the European Union for the years 2014-2020, the European Commission proposed that ITER and GMES be funded outside of this framework.
“If it came into being, this proposal would have very harmful consequences and would be seen as a sign of the disengagement of the European Union from the major strategic sectors”, said Laurent Wauquiez, the French Minister for Higher Education and Research. “It is through these concrete projects that the Europe of tomorrow is being built. It would be absurd for the Union to cease paying for them”, the French minister added. The eight countries also feel that the Commission's approach is not compatible with the requirement for honesty and readability in the European budget, which is necessary more than ever at a time when the member states are focusing on unprecedented budgetary efforts. The European budget needs to cover all expenditure in a complete and transparent way, without prejudice to final decisions on its level of expenditure, France in particular believes.
ITER is a research infrastructure located in Cadarache, France (Bouches-du-Rhône), with the aim of using fusion energy to respond to the energy challenge.
GMES will provide all European citizens with vital services in the sectors of monitoring the environment, environmental protection, the management of risks and civil security. Along with Galileo, it is one of the major achievements of the new space competence of the European Union. (LC/transl.fl)