Commission promotes open discussion on research ethics

In a meeting of research ethics committees from across Europe, EU
politicians emphasised the importance of scientific
freedom and called for tolerant dialogue on ethics in research.

A conference entitled  ‘Research ethics committees in Europe: facing the future together’ took place in Brussels on 27-28 January 2005. An
initiative of the Commission, it brought together representatives
of local and regional ethics committees in Europe to
promote pan-European dialogue, better awareness-raising and
understanding between researchers and regulators on matters of
ethics.

In the opening session of the conference, the Science and
Research Commissioner Janez Poto?nik said that “ethics does not
oppose science”, and called on the research ethics
committees to discuss ethics in research in a “friendly
spirit of tolerance”. 

“It is difficult to be creative without freedom. Therefore,
there should not be any limits for science,” commented
Pia Elda Locatelli, member of the European Parliament and
rapporteur of the Parliament’s contribution to the future
of European research (FP7). She also underlined that
there is a “profound necessity to talk and understand each
other”. 

According to Rainer Gerhold, Director of the Science &
Society division in the Commission, the Brussels conference was a
practical answer to a “bottom-up request”, and the subjects
(the role of research ethics committees, quality assurance,
training etc.) had been planned by the researchers and the speakers
themselves.

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