Brussels, 26/02/2009 (Agence Europe) - The European Commission announced on Tuesday 24 February that it intended to publish a communication on the future of the European Research Council (ERC). This information was given just after the meeting of the Research Commissioner Janez Potoènik and the members of the high-level panel charged with scrutinising the structure and mechanisms of the ERC. This panel, to be chaired by former President of Latvia, Professor Vaira Vike-Freiberga, will take stock of the ERC's achievements and make recommendations on the direction it should take in the future. The group will meet several times before July and will submit a preliminary report this summer to allow the Commission to prepare a response, in the form of a communication, by the autumn. The other members of the panel are: Yves Mény (rapporteur), President of the European University Institute, Fiorella Kostoris Padoa Schioppa, Professor of Economics at "La Sapienza", Rome, Lars-Hendrik Röller, President of European School of Management and Technology, Berlin and Professor of Economics, Humboldt University, Berlin, Lord (David) Sainsbury (Vice-Chair), former Under-Secretary of State at UK Department of Trade and Industry with responsibility for Science & Innovation, currently Head of Gatsby Charitable Foundation, Elias Zerhouni, former Director of National Institutes of Health, USA and previous executive Vice-Dean of Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, USA. (B.C./transl.rt)