Parliament report on Innovation Action Plan
The European Parliament adopted its opinion on the Commission's First Action Plan for Innovation in Europe at its meeting in Strasbourg on 17 September 1997. The Parliament welcomes the Action Plan although it considers it, in its present form, as a first framework for continuing the discussion started by the Green Paper. Innovation, it says, should be considered in its widest sense, with education and training the starting point for any other investment in innovation. High environmental standards would be an important generator of innovation in new technologies, according to the Parliament. The opinion notes that there is no standard model for innovation policy, and takes the view that measures should aim to offer maximum assistance to new organizations or individuals involved in the field of innovation and keep barriers to growth to a minimum. In this context, Parliament welcomes the Commission's efforts to stimulate exchanges of experience and promotion of best practice, as well as its efforts to improve and simplify the business environment for new companies. In addition, it welcomes the Commission's moves to establish a European benchmarking system, to enable comparative analysis between firms. Parliament emphasizes the importance of proper financing in determining the success of start-up companies, and recognizes the role of the European Investment Bank and European Investment Fund in creating employment. In particular, finance at the market penetration phase is critical in the transfer from prototype to final product. The establishment of EASDAQ, the small pan-European market for financing high-tech growth companies is welcomed by the opinion. The Parliament's opinion calls on the Commission to prioritize the actions within the Action Plan; to formulate concrete suggestions for innovation financing; and to lay down rules on standards, trade marks and patents so that European products and services are compatible and interoperable at EU and global level. Furthermore, it calls on the Commission to increase coordination of different Community policies, in particular with a view to their contributing to improving Europe's innovation capacity. Within the context of the RTD Framework Programme, Parliament calls on the Commission to encourage research to be more innovative in orientation, using experience from EUREKA, and to encourage pilot projects aimed at the internationalization of SMEs. Member States should ensure that teachers and training methods aim at encouraging creativity and enterprise from an early age, according to Parliament. Furthermore, Member States should strengthen links between research and industry, including by increasing the mobility of people between universities and industry. Member States are also called upon to consider favourable tax regimes for investors in innovative projects and companies, and to improve the infrastructure for SMEs, including for the supply of economic intelligence. As far as the Framework Programme is concerned, Parliament calls on the Member States to give more authority to the Commission at management level, allowing it to redirect projects and initiate new projects when developments in technology make this relevant.