Brussels, 06/02/2006 (Agence Europe) - Foundations, trusts or charities can play an important role in raising funds for research. Yet, this potential has not been examined or used properly at European level. So says the report “Giving More for Research in Europe”, produced by an expert group set up by the European Commission. According to the authors of the report, the role that foundations and other philanthropic bodies can play in research has been given too little attention. They propose, therefore, to increase this role, including through a better tax and regulatory environment, and by encouraging targeted donation campaigns and better mechanisms for attracting such funds to research. This report follows on from the Action Plan for More Research and Innovation, adopted by the Commission in October 2005, which proposed national and European action to mobilise sources of funding for European research. The report will be discussed at a conference on 27-28 march in Brussels.
The expert group recommends taking measures to create incentives and eliminate obstacles which affect foundations, their donors and their beneficiaries in the area of research. These include: - improving the tax and regulatory environment for foundations by simplifying the legal and regulatory environment and making tax benefit schemes broader, clearer and more user-friendly; - enhancing mechanisms for leveraging funds for research, for example by encouraging “philanthropic venture capital” at European level. The report also suggests the use of public resources to create a new breed of foundations in line with the goals of the Seventh Framework Programme for Research and establishing a “European Forum of Research Foundations” to share experience, review best practices and promote cooperation among foundations funding research. The report can be found at http: //europa.eu.int/invest-in-research/