Brussels, 13/03/2003 (Agence Europe) - The Commission ahs pointed out that if the productivity gap (between the EU and other major economic areas like the USA) continues to grow, European prosperity could be in jeopardy. It also declared that if the EU remained behind its main competitors, it will be difficult to offer the advantages demanded in the European social contract. This observation is part of the Commission's communication on innovation policy, which it adopted on Tuesday in Strasbourg. This communication also highlights the "crucial role" of innovation policy in growth and competitiveness. The text, which together with recent Commission initiatives on industrial policy in the enlarged entrepreneurial Europe, forms a coherent framework for enterprise policy development in favour of growth in the Union and will e presented to the Spring Summit next week in the framework of discussions on the Lisbon Objective.
The Communication defines innovation as a multi-dimensional concept, which goes beyond technological innovation and encompasses, for example, new means of distribution, marketing or design and is not only the results of research. Basing itself on this concept, the Commission examines the challenges that innovation policy has to meet in the EU. It indicates that its performances are not sufficient and its situation could get worse with the accession of the candidate countries where there are significant barriers to innovation. It also notes that certain characteristics in the innovation process are lacking in the EU, notably in the information technology and telecommunications sectors and that certain characteristics specific to the economic and social situation in the Union ( size of public sector, specific diversity of Europe etc.) strongly impact on the elaboration of innovation policy. In brief, the Commission notes that the challenge is to elaborate a specifically European approach t innovation policy for creating stronger economic growth.
In practice, the Commission proposes to act at three levels: Firstly, the "policy governance" dimension. While most innovation policy is defined at national and regional levels, it is the Commission's role to enhance efficiency by offering appropriate co-ordination mechanisms that guarantee Member States preserve the right to establish their own nation innovation systems: " A common framework for overall coordination and coherence must however be present with the objective of assisting national systems in extracting the maximum possible benefit from the European dimensions. It must also work to reduce the innovation divide within the Union, including within the context of enlargement, at the same time contributing to a major improvement in the performance of the Union as a whole. The Commission also considers that national and Community efforts must be supported by an improvement in innovation, innovation systems and performances by way of analysis and better statistics, namely comparable statistics on innovation. Secondly, the communication indicates that, "some sectors, such as information and communication technologies, the textile industry and biotechnology, have highly specific characteristics and therefore require specific policy responses. The need for a more sector-specific focus is also part of the Commission's new approach to industrial policy". Thirdly, the Commission advocates innovation policy in tandem with other policies: fiscal, labour, environmental and trade policies. the Commission also notes that in the area of competition policy, "the interaction between Compton and innovation policy should aim at encouraging the flow of new knowledge, recognising that some agreements between enterprises may be in the interest of promoting innovation and ultimately lead to greater competition. It also point out that some State Aid can be authorised if they allow for objectives of common interest to be pursue and if they do not damage competition and of against the common interest.
The Commission is critical of the public administrations that are often too conservative and rigid. The Commission points out that, "Dealing with innovation as a policy without a well-defined "territory" or an administrative home is a major challenge to policy makers in the Member States and at the Commission".
Not everything is bleak in the field of innovation in the EU. According to the results of the "Innobarometer 2002" published on Thursday, European companies continue to invest in thenew products and services, despite the difficult economic situation. The inquiry reveals above all that:
- Company leaders above all put their innovative force down to qualifications (49%) and to the professionalism of their staff.
- European business leaders consider the role of the markets open to innovative products is more important now than in 2001. One leader out of two today believes that access to clients and/or to "innovative" markets is the main unfulfilled requirement in terms of innovation.
- Most company decision-makers trust that, in coming years, innovation will benefit from the rules of the European single market which, according to their expectations, should open up new markets.
- The share of investment that companies devote to innovation has moved forward since 2001 to reach an average of 25%. The manufacturing sector comes first with 32% of investments allocated on average to innovation and to the "youngest" and exporting firms.
- Between 2001 and 2002, EU companies slowly, but continuously, strengthened their innovation activities. The share of new or renewed services or products introduced over these last two years today represents 22% on average of company turnover, or a two point rise compared to the previous survey.