French government proposes measures in favour of innovation
Nicole Fontaine, French Minister for Industry and her colleague Claudie Haigneré, Minister for Research and New Technologies, presented a communication in favour of innovation during a French government ministerial meeting on 11 December. The paper proposes increasing efforts to bridge the gap between research and development and the world of industry in France. With this plan of action, between now and 2010, it is hoped that three per cent of France's GDP can be devoted to research and development (R&D) spending. France currently finds itself in a weak position (devoting only 2.2 per cent of GDP spending) in comparison to other large Member States in regards to R&D implementation in industry. The communication states clearly the French government's long term support for research and development: 'Innovation is an essential priority because it determines in the long term France's economical growth and is the basis for a good future for our citizens. [...] It is the first step in illustrating our ongoing will to support this effort throughout the legislative process.' The plan of action incorporates a number of concrete proposals: -Setting up an adapted judicial and fiscal context in the shape of the SCRU (la Société de Capital Risque Unipersonnelle) to facilitate individual investors, (Business Angels) which provide innovation businesses with the means to develop. France has approximately 4,000 individual investors which is considerably lower than UK and US which boast between 300,000 and 400,000 'business angels'. -Tax breaks for young innovation businesses (those that are set up for less than eight years and have a innovation expenditure of more than 15 per cent). -Other businesses will also benefit from tax reductions on the money invested in R&D initiatives. -Public funding methods for innovation will be simplified to allow easier access to financial aid. ANVAR, Agence Nationale de Valorisation de la Recherche, will take an active role in implementing these changes. -A series of initiatives will be carried out to increase the number of university students participating in the research and development sector. France is also expected to propose European level initiatives at the European Council in Spring 2003.
Countries
France