New format for the Sixth Framework Programme, says Minister Gago
At his first meeting with the European Parliament, the President-in-office of the Research Council, José Mariano Gago, outlined the Portuguese Presidency's plans for the future of Community research policy. Preparations for the Sixth Framework Programme should look beyond the confines of previous Framework Programmes, said the Portuguese Minister, and will need to be updated to keep pace with developments in the EU. The framework will inevitably change if Research Commissioner Busquin's initiative for a Common Research Area becomes a reality. A frontier-free research policy in Europe will require greater coordination and cooperation between national and European research programmes. The area this covers is potentially very wide, encompassing Member States, candidate countries and signatories to cooperation agreements. Mr Gago also hopes to reach new cooperation agreements with additional countries. 'As we enter a new century and millennium all of us should take the time to reflect on what European research will be expected to deliver and how circumstances will differ from or be the same as under the first five Framework Programmes', he said. 'Research policy will have to be redefined against the background of an enlarged European Union, both in terms of the number of its Member States and the scope of its activities, for example the development of the common foreign and security policy, the creation of a common area of freedom and justice, and the single currency.' These issues will be discussed at an informal meeting of Research Ministers in March, with a view to agreeing a resolution at the Research Council when it meets in June. European research policy also has much to contribute to tackling the problems of unemployment and social exclusion. This will be discussed at a special meeting of the European Council in March on the theme of 'Employment, economic reform and social cohesion - towards a Europe of innovation and knowledge.' 'Science and technology policy plays an important role in promoting growth, knowledge creation and innovation,' said Mr Gago. 'In fact, the consolidation and updating of scientific and technical skills and the widespread acquisition of IT skills are central to the creation of skilled employment and the construction of a competitive economic and social base.' To this end, Mr Gago expressed his support for the Commission's communication 'e-Europe - an information society for all', and its report 'Strategies for Jobs in the Information Society.' The Council Presidency will be working towards an action plan for an information and knowledge-based society, focused on a Ministerial Conference on knowledge and the Information Society in April. The resultant European action plan should serve as a guide for national plans and development strategies. Mr Gago invited the members of the Committee on Industry, External Trade, Research and Energy to share their opinions on topical questions affecting research policy. Such items, he suggested, included: 'Coordination of national, pluri-national and European science and technology programmes, the need of European institutions for the governance of science, networking of laboratories, access and capacity of this network, greater mobility of researchers, the development of the Information Society, and initiatives to make Europe, in general, a more attractive area for scientific and technological development.' International cooperation will be a priority area for the Portuguese Presidency, Mr Gago went on. 'We intend to strengthen this dimension of the research policy of the European union in a number of areas, in particular as regards the cooperation agreements with the United States and China.' The Asian initiatives will be launched in the former Portuguese colony of Macau in May, when Mr Gago promised to promote further the Eureka initiative. The Portuguese Minister also expressed his support for furthering the Barcelona process, encouraging cooperation among countries bordering the Mediterranean. He also signalled a commitment to establishing new bilateral agreements with Malta, Ukraine, India, and in particular Brazil. Current research programmes are not to be overlooked however, and Mr Gago underlined a commitment to ensuring the success of the Fifth Framework Programme, the European space strategy and the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor. MEPs welcomed these initiatives, praising the 'passion' of the Portuguese Minister. However while Mr Gago was well received as 'a man of vision', some Committee members cautioned that he must consider how these ideas can be put into practice.