Brussels, 11/12/2012 (Agence Europe) - Ministers responsible for research reached an agreement on Tuesday 11 December to determine the specific objectives and the broad lines of the activity of the future framework programme for research and innovation, “Horizon 2020”. Meeting in Brussels in Competitiveness Council format, the ministers adopted a partial general approach relating to the draft regulation establishing the specific framework programme.
Inter-institutional rivalry. The only major point that caused opinions to differ between many member states and the European Commission concerns expert committees. With a view to simplifying the procedure for evaluating individual projects that aim to allocate subsidies on the basis of calls for proposals, the Commission has suggested limiting the number of these committees composed of national experts to four, one of which would have a cross-cutting role. The Council, however, has considered that this would be equal to losing the expertise of the committees, a European source states. The Council thus hopes that, with each strategic objective that is determined in the four chapters of the specific programme, a committee will be specifically set up. It was thus proposed that the principle of comitology should be placed in the internal management of Horizon 2020, and that a larger number of committees should be kept, between 14 and 17, as was the case in the seventh framework programme (2007-2013). This position was highly criticised by Commissioner Maire Geoghegan-Quinn (Research, Innovation and Science) during the debates, who considered that comitology runs counter to the imperative of simplifying the framework programme by adding a further administrative burden. This difference will be the subject of later talks, as the Council has included an appendix the precise content of which must still be established during the Irish Presidency, during the year 2013.
Four chapters of specific programme. The specific programme is composed of four parts which define the areas that the Council, following in the Commission's tracks, considers as being priorities for the years 2014-2020. Minor adjustments have been made compared to the Commission's initial proposal. The first part, on “scientific excellence”, aims to enhance: - research at the borders of knowledge in the context of activity by the European Research Council (ERC); - research in the field of emerging and future technologies; - career development, skills and training in the context of Marie Sklodowska-Curie work; - and European research infrastructure, especially online infrastructure. The second part, “industrial primacy”, is to bolster EU industrial primacy in various areas (information and communication technology, nanotechnology, advanced materials, biotechnologies, space) but to improve access to venture capital for investment in research and innovation, and increase innovation in SMEs. The chapter on “societal challenges” includes very diverse objectives ranging from the supply of safe foodstuffs and quality to the promotion of projects that aim to promote inclusive European societies, and including the setting in place of a reliable, sustainable, competitive and environmentally-friendly transport and energy system. The last chapter, “direct non-nuclear action of the Joint Research Centre” must provide customer-oriented scientific and technical support for European policies, by focusing on all the objectives of the previous chapters. (JK/transl.jl)