Minister Bulmahn points the way forward
German Federal Minister for Education and Research Edelgard Bulmahn tells CORDIS News what she hopes to tackle during the German Presidency of the European Union, which runs until the end of June 1999. Question 1: What is the main objective of the German Council Presidency in the areas of research, development and innovation? Answer 1 Research, and thus new knowledge, is a prerequisite and a catalyst for the development of our society. The promotion of research constitutes practical provision for the future and new products and processes provide a crucial stimulus for sustained growth and fuller employment. The more successful the Member States are at translating that link into specific policy, the better it is for Europe. The more successful the European Union is at focussing research policy on those goals, the better it is for all the citizens of Europe. The German Presidency of the EU wishes to employ its activities to establish points of reference for the emergence of a society based on knowledge and the increasingly international nature of education and research and at the same time to make a contribution towards a European employment pact. Question 2: What are the actions and initiatives that will be undertaken in the areas of research, development and innovation to promote the German Presidency objectives? The Fifth Framework Programme (FP5) will be under way during the German Presidency. It will be important for the new structures really to concentrate their attention on problem-oriented key actions and the increased involvement of science, business and users in implementation. During the drafting of the FP5, the Council repeatedly called for European research management to be modernised with the emphasis on efficiency, transparency and greater integration of European scientific organisations. We will intensively pursue that objective from the very outset of the FP5. The association of the applicant countries in Central and Eastern Europe and Cyprus will come about under the German Presidency. We do not wish only to conclude the relevant agreements but also to help our new partners to integrate into the new European research structures as swiftly and effectively as possible. Integration into the European research programme (and consequently into the education programme) must be a success. It will then have a favourable effect on the entire accession process. An ever-expanding Europe is particularly dependent on intensive dialogue between the "headquarters in Brussels" and the scientific and business community. We will attempt to organise an open dialogue between the Council of Ministers and prominent representatives of science and business to discuss future strategies for European promotion of research specifically in the long run up to the Sixth Framework Programme and uncover any weakness in good time during the launch of the FP5. Furthermore, we will set the course and provide stimuli for the long-term development of research, education and innovation in Europe in a number of interesting conferences and scientific events. We will publicly initiate the FP5 at a large-scale launch in Essen. We wish to provide practical support for the integration of the applicant countries and also hold out the prospect of the foreseeable re-establishment of a fully integrated Europe in terms of the arts and social sciences. We wish to make progress on the international integration of Europe in consultation with the countries of the Mediterranean and within the transatlantic partnership. We will discuss, in particular, the ethical bases of and questions raised by the innovation process in politics and society, and, finally, attempt to achieve greater clarity as regards the opportunities and risks that research and education will soon produce as we enter the next century Following the adoption of the FP5, the German Presidency has an opportunity to stimulate ideas for the long term and set the course for the future. We wish to seize that opportunity. Question 3: The FP5 will be launched during the German Presidency. How will FP5 contribute to European competitiveness and fuller employment in Europe? Answer 3: In terms of its structure, the FP5 differs considerably from previous programmes. Organisation along the lines of problem-orientated "key actions" and the discussion thereof by independent groups of external advisors is specifically intended to ensure that the promotion of European research makes a greater contribution than before to concrete innovation in Europe. The problem-orientated grouping together of projects will provide us with great impetus in that respect. The participation of small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs), which are an important factor in the creation of new jobs in Europe, will also have an effect. Question 4: Could you outline the approach of German enterprises and businesses to participation in the FP5 and how do you expect them to benefit? Answer 4: The German economy is largely export-oriented. Businesses and their employees realise that Germany can exist as a global location only in a prosperous Europe - and that applies equally to all our neighbours. Therefore the creation of European networks, the establishment of new contacts in Europe's partner countries, and the specific strengthening of links with Europe's university and non-university research establishments is a decisive factor for a prosperous future for businesses too. The European research programme has an important role to play in that respect In the past, the involvement of business may have suffered specifically from the fact that the European promotion of research was split up excessively among every conceivable branch of science. We hope to have effectively counteracted that by restructuring the FP5 and accompanying it with high-level expertise from science and business. German business has high expectations of the new structures. I am convinced that the Commission will live up to those expectations through effective management structures and consistent implementation of the new objectives. Question 5: In the context of the EU Science and Technology Cooperation agreement which was signed on 13 October 1998, do you support closer collaboration between US and EU enterprises? Answer 5: The relationship between Europe and the USA is characterised by close interlocking links and open competition. The developments of recent months in various sectors of industry have provided striking evidence of the dynamics of those relations. It is very important for European science to maintain very close contacts with our American colleagues in order to distinguish itself by means of exchanges and competition. The same applies to our American partners. Therefore, I very much welcome the Cooperation Agreement between the EU and the USA During our Presidency, we will develop the most specific prospects possible for such cooperation within the FP5 by means of a Europe-American conference in Stuttgart. Question 6: How can R&D help the candidate countries on their way towards the European Union? Answer 6: As of spring 1999, the applicant countries of Central and Eastern Europe and Cyprus are expected to participate in specific programmes of the FP5 on an unrestricted basis. The success or failure of that will provide a significant indication in those countries as to how the further accession process will be assessed. Therefore, Europe and the Federal Republic of Germany, in particular, have a particular interest in the success of our partners from Central and Eastern Europe in becoming partners to the greatest possible extent in European projects as early as the first stage of the FP5 In that respect it is particularly important for scientists from the applicant countries also to take part in Community projects as lead managers and for the largest possible number of next-generation scientists from those countries to use the opportunities available to spend time in the Member States of the EU and, conversely, for the countries of Central and Eastern Europe also to act as hosts to EU scientists. The promotion of "centres of excellence" in those countries, for which provision is made in the FP5, is of particular important in that respect. We anticipate that, as a result, points of crystallisation in Central and Eastern Europe will be fostered which will effectively increase the attraction of those countries to the European scientific community.