FP7 to include quantitative target for SME participation?

The Competitiveness Council will discuss, on 7 June 2005, a number of FP7 proposal related issues raised by the Luxembourg Presidency.

The Competitiveness Council will hold, on 7 June 2005, a debate on how to take forward the Commission’s FP7 proposal. The Luxembourg Presidency proposal for decisions concerning the FP7 has invited the Council to address, among others, the following issues:

• splitting the ‘security and space’ research priority into two separate components with separate budgets;  
• the need for joint technology initiatives in parallel with the collaborative research projects; 
• introduction of a quantitative target for the participation of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs)  in collaborative research activities; 
• reinforcing industry-academia mobility. 

In addition, ministers will be invited to reflect on whether the Commission’s proposal on FP7 includes enough information on the cross-cutting aspects of research and on how to ensure close co-ordination and complementarity between FP7 and CIP (Competitiveness and Innovation Framework Programme). 

According to the Presidency proposal, the Commission will be asked to clarify the envisaged Community co-financing of regional, national and international programmes.

Further, the “higher level of ambition and the proposed longer duration of FP7 require more detailed description of the implementation and management principles in the FP7 decision,” suggests the Presidency.

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