Brussels, 19/12/2006 (Agence Europe) - After formal adoption by the Council on Monday 18 December of two Community and Euratom chapters (with allocations of €50.5 billion for the period 2007-2013 and €2.7 billion for the period 2007-2011 respectively) under the 7th EU Framework Programme for Research and Development (FPRD), as well as the rules of participation for the Community chapter, the Council adopted specific programmes and rules of participation for the Euratom programme. The procedure is therefore now closed once and for all and the Commission will be able to launch a first series of forty-two calls for proposals on Friday 22 December. Publication of the calls will allow the scientific community to prepare their proposals with a view to selection procedure that will only really open after the framework programme has taken effect, the day after it is published in the Official Journal during the second half of January 2007.
During the adoption, on Monday of the decision relating to the 7th FPRD, seven Member States (Germany, Austria, Poland, Portugal, Malta, Lithuania and Italy) issued statements on research activity involving human embryonic stem cells. Without bringing into question the adoption of the framework programme, these declarations explain the ethical viewpoints of the seven countries. Human embryonic stem cell research will only be possible in the Member States that authorise it. Its joint funding from Community funds comes within an ethical framework adopted in codecision by the Parliament and Council and will be authorised by a committee composed of Member State representatives. (oj)