In line with the European Parliament's ambition to provide the European Union with the means to achieve its ambitions, the Parliamentary Committee on Industry and Research set the budget for the Horizon Europe programme for the period 2021-2027 at €120 billion (2018 prices) on Wednesday 21 November.
“An ambitious budget is also crucial for funding ground-breaking research and innovation projects and for creating quality jobs,” said Dan Nica (S&D, Romania), rapporteur on the draft regulation establishing the Horizon Europe programme.
The European Commission had initially opted for a budget of €86.6 billion (2018 prices) (see EUROPE 12036, 12018).
“Only a substantial increase in the EU budget for research and innovation will assure that Europe remains competitive compared to the United States and China,” added Christian Ehler (EPP, Germany), rapporteur on the draft decision to implement the framework programme that will succeed Horizon 2020 after 2020. He lamented ‘a huge gap’ between the sums allocated to research and the stated ambition to invest 3% of Member States' GDP in research and innovation.
In a rare act, all the compromise amendments tabled on the draft regulations and decisions were adopted. Hence the overwhelming majority with which the two texts were adopted.
MEPs maintain the three-pillar architecture of the future programme, as envisaged by the European Commission. They apportion the €120 billion they want to allocate to Horizon 2020 as follows: - 27.42% to Pillar I ‘Excellence and Open Science', of which 17.64% is for the European Research Council; - 55.48% for Pillar II ‘Global Challenges and European Industrial Competitiveness', including a Secure Societies cluster; - 12.71% for Pillar III 'Innovative Europe', of which 8.71% is for the European Innovation Council.
The remaining 4.39% will be used to finance the strengthening of the European Research Area, including 4% for the dissemination of excellence and the expansion of participation in the programme.
Mr Ehler welcomed the fact that some thematic research priorities had been added or strengthened, such as the preservation of cultural heritage, artificial intelligence or the fight against terrorism.
MEPs want small and medium-sized enterprises to be able to benefit more easily from the Horizon Europe programme. In particular, €2.5 billion of the total budget will have to be 'ring-fenced' for them. In the event of an application for financial assistance from two projects of equivalent quality, priority would be given to those including SMEs, actors from under-represented Member States and/or women.
"We will help to increase participation of the EU-13 countries (the countries that entered the EU after 2004) which have so far received less than six per cent of the current Horizon 2020 Programme without undermining the excellence principle", Mr Ehler promised.
The draft reports should be submitted to the December or January plenary session.
The focus is now on the Competitiveness Council, which could reach a partial political agreement in principle ('general approach') at the end of November. (Original version in French by Mathieu Bion)