Speaking to a group of journalists on Friday 8 January to present his priorities for the next six months, the Portuguese Minister of Science, Technology and Higher Education, Manuel Heitor, whose country has held the Presidency of the Council of the EU since 1 January, stressed the urgent need to invest more in European research.
He began his speech by recalling the objective of overall investment of at least 3% of the Union’s GDP in research and development, again advocated by the European Commission in its recent communication on a new European Research Area (ERA - see EUROPE 12571/9).
A communication that the minister described as “very important” and that Lisbon intends to build on during its Presidency. The Portuguese government assures that it will encourage the continuation of joint initiatives within the framework of the new ERA, “especially on the themes of green hydrogen, artificial intelligence in the public domain, and green supercomputers”, it states in its Presidency programme. An event is also expected to be organised to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the ERA.
Finally, the Portuguese Presidency of the EU Council commits in its programme to prioritising the professionalisation of careers in research by including them in the European reference framework. “Europe needs more scientists, and this can only be achieved if we continue to gradually improve the working conditions of research activities”, Heitor insisted.
The first Research Council organised by the Portuguese Presidency has been announced for 26 February. In addition, an informal meeting of research ministers will be held on 2 February. (Original version in French by Agathe Cherki)