Brussels, 25/05/2016 (Agence Europe) - During the “Space” item on the agenda of the Competitiveness Council on Thursday 26 May, ministers with responsibility for space policy will be asked by the Dutch Presidency of the Council of the EU to decide which are the two main obstacles inhibiting expansion in the uptake of space data within the EU and, as a consequence, the two follow-up actions to be undertaken to resolve the problems.
Taking the six majors obstacles previously identified (see EUROPE 11550) as the starting point, the Dutch Presidency puts forward eight possible follow-up actions in the document sent to the member states. These may be put in place at European level, nationally or in combination between the two levels.
The Presidency proposes: - gathering comments and experiences from the world of business to determine existing obstacles, for example, through the use of Horizon 2020 projects; - working on technical adjustments to be brought to the next generation of satellites on both the Galileo and Copernicus programmes to maximise the uptake of space data; - drawing up a weaknesses in the current regulations (European Commission) that are restricting innovation and identifying other possibilities in monitoring and reporting activities; - adopting a holistic approach and making space data interoperable with other types of data (aerial, ground); - running EU-wide pilot projects that focus on the needs of the market that includes public authorities and service providers (European Commission by developing new technologies and services and putting in place a dialogue between the industrial sector, research institutes and governmental bodies; - promoting clusters by bringing together a host of small innovative companies working in the space sector; - identifying ways in which European policies (single market strategy, digital single market strategy) can support the uptake of space data; - involving citizens to a greater extent.
In addressing these questions, ministers will make preparation for the informal meeting that will take place in The Hague on 30 May. This meeting will be devoted entirely to the European space strategy (see EUROPE 11540) and, in a configuration similar to that introduced by the Luxembourg Presidency (see EUROPE 11443), will be attended by the European Space Agency. The European Parliament is expected to approve a resolution on “Space Market Uptake in Europe” during the plenary session in Strasbourg, 6-9 June. (Original version in French by Pascal Hansens)