The Committee on Industry, Research and Energy adopted the report by Teresa RIERA MADURELL (S&D, ES) on the proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council establishing Horizon 2020 - The Framework Programme for Research and Innovation (2014-2020).
The parliamentary committee recommends that the European Parliament’s position adopted at first reading in accordance with the ordinary legislative procedure should be to amend the Commission’s proposal as follows:
General objective and added value: Members stipulate that the objective of Horizon 2020 should be the strengthening the European scientific and technological base and fostering benefits for society, including better exploitation of the social, economic and industrial potential of policies of innovation, research and technological development. Support under Horizon 2020 shall be targeted towards activities where intervention at Union level brings added value compared to intervention at national or regional level.
Budget: the financial allocation in the legislative proposal is only an indicative amount for the legislative authority and cannot be agreed until agreement has been reached on the proposed Regulation establishing the Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) for the period 2014-2020.
Nevertheless, the report underlines that the framework programme should contribute to the achievement of the objective of 3% of GDP spent on RTD in the Union between now and 2020. Members consider that the Union budget should mirror this ambitious goal by making a radical shift towards funding future-oriented investments and this should be clearly visible in a considerable increase in the funding level for the next seven-year period.
Members propose allocating the total budget as follows: (a) 32.6% to scientific excellence; (b) 24.3% to industrial leadership; and (c) 37.5% to societal challenges. The maximum overall amount for the Union financial contribution to the non-nuclear direct actions of the Joint Research Centre shall be 2.4% of the total budget. The European Institute of Innovation and Technology shall be financed through a maximum contribution of 3.3% of the total budget.
Strategic advice and coordination: Members stress that effective coordination between the three main pillars of Horizon 2020 shall be ensured. Strategic advice and coordination of research and innovation aiming at common objectives and requiring synergies across Horizon 2020 shall be pursued.
Main purposes of the programme: according to Members, Horizon 2020 should, in particular, seek to attain the following objectives:
(i) emphasis on the widest possible use and dissemination of knowledge generated by the supported activities up to its commercial exploitation. The programme should ensure all stages in the research and innovation chain, including frontier and applied research, knowledge transfer;
(ii) spreading and promoting excellent research throughout all the European regions as a precondition for a geographically balanced growth and innovation strategy of the Union;
(iii) consolidating the links between science and society with a view to increasing public confidence in science. Horizon 2020 should:
- promote active participation and informed engagement of citizens and civil society in the research and innovation process;
- ensure due consideration of the gender dimension;
- promote excellent science education;
- increase the accessibility and re-use of the results of publicly funded research, in particular scientific publications and data;
- close the digital, research and innovation divide;
- develop responsible research and innovation and governance framework agendas that meet citizens' and civil society's concerns and expectations ;
(iv) fostering the mobility of researchers as a means for preventing forms of brain-drain among the Member States by supporting activities that attract, retain, train and develop research and innovation talent: human capital building activities, including those focused specifically at young people and women, should be a standard element in all research and innovation activities funded by the Union;
(v) enabling free access to scientific information: to increase the circulation and exploitation of knowledge, open access to scientific publications should be mandatory if a decision to publish is taken for scientific publications which receive public funding from Horizon 2020;
(vi) special consideration should be given to multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary approaches as necessary elements for major scientific progress;
(vii) addressing global challenges: the programme should encourage and support activities towards exploiting Europe's leadership in the race to develop new processes and technologies promoting sustainable development, in a broad sense, and combating climate change. The report retains the structure proposed by the Commission, except for the section “Inclusive, innovative and secure societies”. This challenge was divided in two because of the particular nature of challenges relating to security.
(viii) extending SME participation: at least 4.0% of the Horizon 2020 budget should be delivered through a dedicated SME instrument which should be managed and implemented by a single dedicated administrative structure. Particular attention shall also be paid to the adequate participation and representation of SMEs in the governing structures of the ERA and in particular of public-private partnerships;
(ix) reducing the research and innovation divide within the Union by enabling synergies with the Structural Funds in support of research and innovation through the implementation of complementary measures in a coordinated way.
Innovation fast-track: to facilitate the commercialisation and diffusion of innovations, the report recommends the use of open calls with accelerated procedures, following a bottom-up logic, to ensure fast realisation of innovative projects.
Transparent and efficient implementation process: multiannual indicative roadmaps should be set at the beginning of the programming for each specific objective and cross-cutting theme and a short and transparent drafting process of the annual work programmes should be strived at. The Commission, when preparing and drawing-up the roadmaps and work programmes should involve and inform the European Parliament and the Council.
International cooperation: international cooperation with third countries and international organisations should be promoted and integrated in Horizon 2020 to achieve, in particular to: (i) respect international commitments such as the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals; (ii) the creation of globally competitive centres of excellence making the Union a global hub for world-leading cutting-edge research and innovation.
Political control: in order that the European Parliament is able to exercise its function of political control and to ensure transparency and accountability, the Commission should duly and regularly inform the European Parliament of all relevant aspects of the implementation of Horizon 2020.