Brussels, 13/03/2009 (Agence Europe) - MEPs want to see greater mobility and better careers for scientific researchers in the European Union. The EU and its Member States have pledged to spend 3% of their budgets on R&D and train some 600,000 more researchers.
Adopting an own initiative report by Pia Elda Locatelli (PES, Italy) by 512 to 16 with 14 abstentions, the MEPs aim is to support the European Commission's suggestions of a European partnership for researchers in order to set up a European Research Area (ERA). The MEPs say that promoting scientific researcher mobility and exchanges of scientists in Europe would lead to better working conditions and career opportunities in Europe and therefore Member States should start by considering the introduction of portable research grants to encourage them to carry out their research in another Member State. The MEPs believe greater mobility could be achieved by introducing a system of research-vouchers. The EP recommends measures to improve the training and experience of EU researchers, stressing the need to improve the career prospects of young researchers by increasing funding, basing career advancement accorded to criteria other than seniority (using criteria like innovation capacity and training courses in companies) and encouraging inner-disciplinary training. The European Commission and Member States are invited to study the possibility of creating an EU researcher pension fund irrespective of the duration of research contracts. The MEPs suggest that all PhD students should have the same legal terms and conditions in work contracts in the Member States. Some flagship measures are put forward for increasing the number of researchers and the quality of research in Europe, like introducing special visas for researchers, introducing a single career model in the EU, creating a system to gather job offers and research contracts and facilitating return to the establishment of origin by increasing pay or providing other perks. (B.C. trans fl)