Proposal for a Decision of the European Parliament and of the Council concerning the seventh framework programme of the European Community for research, technological development and demonstration activities (2007 to 2013) {SEC(2005) 430} {SEC(2005) 431}
Date: 2005-04-06
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: EU programme, EU research policy, innovation, research and development, research programme

COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES 

Brussels, 6.4.2005 
COM(2005) 119 final 

2005/0043 (COD) 
2005/0044 (CNS) 

Proposal for a 

DECISION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL 

concerning the seventh framework programme of the European Community for 
research, technological development and demonstration activities (2007 to 2013) 

Proposal for a 

COUNCIL DECISION 

concerning the seventh framework programme of the European Atomic Energy 
Community (Euratom) for nuclear research and training activities (2007 to 2011) 

BUILDING THE EUROPE OF KNOWLEDGE 

(presented by the Commission) 

{SEC(2005) 430} 
{SEC(2005) 431}

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EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM 

1. 

CONTEXT OF THE PROPOSAL 

The  political  context  and  objectives  for  this  proposal  are  set  out  in  the  communication 
“Building the ERA of knowledge for growth”1 presented at the same time by the Commission.  

Knowledge is at the core of the Lisbon agenda, and underpins all its elements. Research and 
technology are, together with education and innovation, the components of the  “Triangle of 
knowledge”. 

To  become  the  “most  dynamic  and  competitive  knowledge-based  economy  in  the  world” 
while maintaining the “European Model”, Europe must increase its research effort to 3% of 
EU GDP and better exploit its capacities in this field, transforming scientific results into new 
products, processes and services.  

Alongside  the  Member  states  and  in  close  cooperation  with  them,  the  EU  must  mobilise  its 
legal and financial tools towards this goal, starting with the research Framework Programme. 

2. 

PRIOR CONSULTATION  

In the preparation of the current proposals, the Commission has taken into account the views 
expressed by the other EU institutions, in particular the European Parliament and the Member 
States,  as  well  as  by  many  stakeholders  in  a  broad  consultation,  including  the  scientific 
community and industry.  

This proposal also relies on an in-depth impact assessment. This impact assessment was based 
upon  inputs  from  stakeholders,  internal  and  external  evaluations  and  other  studies,  and 
contributions  from  recognised  European  evaluation  and  impact  assessment  experts.  The 
assessment found that Europe faces many economic, social and environmental challenges that 
science  and  technology  help  address;  that  the  European  scientific  and  technological  system 
has flaws, however; and that the EU successfully supported research through past Framework 
Programmes.  

3. 

LEGAL ASPECTS 

The proposal for the EC Framework Programme, which covers the period 2007-2013, is based 
on Chapter XVIII of the Treaty, articles 163 to 171, which provides for an EU research policy 
and its financial instruments, in particular the multi-annual Research Framework Programme.  

In order to strengthen excellence and raise the average level of research in Europe, the basic 
principle  is  to  stimulate,  organise  and  exploit  all  forms  of  cooperation  in  research,  from 
collaboration  in  joint  projects  and  networks  to  the  coordination  of  national  research 
programmes, competition at the European level as well as the joint implementation of large 
technology initiatives and the common development of infrastructures of European dimension 
and interest.  

1 

COM(2005) 118. 

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The size of the action is proportionate to the volume of needs in the EU-25, due to the rising 
costs of research, the need to put together critical masses of human and material resources, as 
well as to answer to emerging needs or needs best covered at the European level. 

In order to maximize the impact of EU financial support, the links and complementarities with 
both  national  activities  and  policies  and  other  EU  actions  and  sources  of  funding  will  be 
strengthened under the 7th Framework programme. 

4. 

BUDGETARY IMPLICATION  

The  “legislative  financial  statement”  attached  to  this  Decision  sets  out  the  budgetary 
implications and the human and administrative resources. 

5. 

SIMPLIFICATION 

A key feature of the 7th Framework Programme is a significant simplification of its operation 
compared with its predecessors. The measures envisaged in this respect are described in the 
Working  Document  on  implementation  accompanying  the  proposal.  They  will  cover  the 
entire  funding  cycle,  including  the  simplification  of  funding  schemes,  administrative  and 
financial rules and procedures, as well as the readibility and user-friendliness of documents. 
The  Commission  intends  to  externalise,  under  its  responsibility,  activities  which  generate  a 
large number of small operations. An executive agency will manage, in particular the Marie 
Curie actions, the support to SMEs, as well as administrative tasks related to other research 
projects,  including  collaborative  research  projects.  This  approach  will  also  be  taken  for 
implementing the activities of the European Research Council (ERC). 

6. 

CONTENT 

The 7th Framework Programme will be organised in four specific programmes, corresponding 
to four major objectives of European research policy: 

– 

Cooperation 

Support will be given to the whole range of research activities carried out in trans-
national cooperation, from collaborative projects and networks to the coordination of 
research programmes. International cooperation between the EU and third countries 
is an integral part of this action. 

– 

Ideas 

An autonomous European Research Council will be created to support investigator-
driven “frontier research” carried out by individual teams competing at the European 
level,  in  all  scientific  and  technological  fields,  including  engineering,  socio-
economic sciences and the humanities.  

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– 

People 

The activities supporting training and career development of researchers, referred to 
as “Marie Curie” actions, will be reinforced with a better focus on the key aspects of 
skills and career development and strengthened links with national systems. 

– 

Capacities 

Key  aspects  of  European  research  and  innovation  capacities  will  be  supported: 
research  infrastructures;  research  for  the  benefit  of  SMEs;  regional  research  driven 
clusters;  unlocking  the  full  research  potential  in  the  EU’s  “convergence”  regions; 
“Science in Society” issues; horizontal” activities of international co-operation.  

Through  these  four  specific  programmes,  the  aim  is  to  allow  for  the  creation  of  European 
poles of excellence.  

In  addition,  there  will  be  a  specific  programme  for  the  non-nuclear  actions  of  the  Joint 
Research Centre. 

The programme on Cooperation will be organised into sub-programmes, each of which will 
be  operationally  autonomous  as  far  as  possible  while  at  the  same  time  demonstrating 
coherence  and  consistency  and  allowing  for  joint,  cross-thematic  approaches  to  research 
subjects of common interest.  

The nine themes identified for the “Cooperation” part are: 

– 

– 

– 

– 

– 

– 

– 

– 

– 

Health; 

Food, Agriculture and Biotechnology; 

Information and Communication Technologies; 

Nanosciences,  Nanotechnologies,  Materials  and  new  Production 
Technologies; 

Energy; 

Environment (including Climate Change); 

Transport (including Aeronautics); 

Socio-economic Sciences and the Humanities; 

Security and Space. 

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2005/0043 (COD) 

Proposal for a 

DECISION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL 

concerning the seventh framework programme of the European Community for 
research, technological development and demonstration activities (2007 to 2013) 

THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, 

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, and in particular Article 
166(1) thereof, 

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission2, 

Having regard to the opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee3, 

Having regard to the opinion of the Committee of the Regions4, 

Acting in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 251 of the Treaty5, 

Whereas: 

(1) 

(2) 

(3) 

The  Community  has  the  objective  of  strengthening  the  scientific  and  technological 
bases of the Community industry and to assure a high level of competitivity. To this 
end,  the  Community  shall  promote  all  the  research  activities  deemed  necessary,  in 
particular by encouraging undertakings, including small and medium sized enterprises 
(“SMEs”),  research  centres  and  universities  in  their  research  and  technological 
development activities. 

The  central  role  of  research  in  ensuring  competitivity  and  economic  growth  was 
recognised  by  the  European  Council  of  Lisbon  which  highlighted  knowledge  and 
innovation as the heart of the economic progress, including growth of employment in 
Europe. 

In line with the Lisbon strategy, the European Council of Barcelona set the target of 
raising European research efforts to 3% of EU GDP, two thirds of which should come 
from private investment. 

2 
3 
4 
5 

OJ C , , p. . 
OJ C , , p. . 
OJ C , , p. . 
OJ C , , p. . 

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(4) 

(5) 

(6) 

(7) 

(8) 

(9) 

The  European  Parliament  has  repeatedly  stressed  the  importance  of  research, 
technological development and the increased role of knowledge for economic growth, 
most  recently  in  its  guidelines  for  future  EU  policy  to  support  research  of  March 
20056. 

Taking into account the research needs of all Community policies and building upon 
wide-spread  support  from  European  industry,  the  scientific  community,  universities, 
and  other  interested  circles,  the  Community  should  establish  the  scientific  and 
technological  objectives  to  be  achieved  under  its  seventh  Framework  Programme  in 
the period 2007 to 2013. 

These  objectives  should  build  upon  the  achievements  of  the  sixth  Framework 
Programme  towards  the  creation  of  the  European  Research  Area  and  carry  them 
further  towards  the  development  of  a  knowledge-based  economy  and  society  in 
Europe. Among these objectives the following are particularly important: 

Trans-national cooperation at every scale across the EU should be supported.  

The  dynamism,  creativity  and  excellence  of  European  research  at  the  frontier  of 
knowledge should be enhanced.  

The  human  potential  in  research  and  technology  in  Europe  should  be  strengthened 
quantitatively and qualitatively.  

(10)  The  research  and  innovation  capacities  throughout  Europe  should  be  enhanced  and 

their optimal use should be ensured. 

(11) 

In order to realise these objectives it is necessary to promote four types of activities: 
trans-national  cooperation  on  policy-defined  themes  (“Cooperation”),  investigator-
driven research based on the initiative of the research community (“Ideas”), support of 
individual researchers (“People”), and support of research capacities (“Capacities”). 

(12)  Under  “Cooperation”,  support  should  be  provided  to  trans-national  co-operation  at 
every  scale  across  the  European  Union  and  beyond,  in  a  number  of  thematic  areas 
corresponding  to  major  fields  of  the  progress  of  knowledge  and  technology,  where 
research should be supported and strengthened to address European social, economic, 
environmental and industrial challenges. 

(13)  Under  “Ideas”,  activities  should  be  implemented  by  a  European  Research  Council 

(“ERC”), which should enjoy a high degree of autonomy. 

(14)  Under  “People”,  individuals  should  be  stimulated  to  enter  into  the  researcher’s 
profession, European researchers should be encouraged to stay in Europe, researchers 
from the entire world should be attracted to Europe and Europe should be made more 
attractive to the best researchers. 

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Not yet published in the OJ.  

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(15)  Under  “Capacities”,  the  use  and  development  of  research  infrastructures  should  be 
optimised;  innovative  capacities  of  SMEs  and  their  ability  to  benefit  from  research 
should  be  strengthened;  the  development  of  regional  research-driven  clusters  should 
be  supported;  the  research  potential  in  the  EU’s  convergence  and  outermost  regions 
should  be  unlocked;  science  and  society  should  be  brought  closer  together  for  the 
harmonious integration of science and technology in European society; and horizontal 
actions and measures in support of international co-operation should be undertaken. 

(16)  The Joint Research Centre should contribute to the attainment of the objectives set out 
above by carrying out direct actions and by providing customer-driven support for the 
implementation of EU policies. 

(17)  The  seventh  Framework  Programme  complements  the  activities  carried  out  in  the 
Member States as well as other Community actions that are necessary for the overall 
strategic effort for the implementation of the Lisbon objectives, alongside in particular 
those  on  structural  funds,  agriculture,  education,  training,  competitiveness  and 
innovation, industry, employment and environment. 

(18) 

Innovation  and  SME-related  activities  supported  under  this  Framework  Programme 
should  be  complementary  to  those  undertaken  under  the  framework  programme  for 
Competitiveness and Innovation.  

(19)  Given the widely supported enlarged scope of the Framework Programme actions, the 
leverage effect of funding in national and private investments, the need to enable the 
Community  to  meet  new  science  and  technology  challenges,  the  vital  role  the 
Community intervention plays in making the European research system more efficient 
and  effective,  the  contribution  of  a  larger  seventh  Framework  Programme  to  the 
reinvigoration  of  the  Lisbon  strategy,  there  is  a  pressing  need  to  double  the  EU 
research budget7. 

(20)  Taking into account the mid-term review of the use of new instruments under the sixth 
Framework Programme and the Five Year Assessment of the Framework Programme, 
a  new  approach  has  been  defined  which  should  allow  the  political  objectives  of  EU 
research policy to be reached more easily, more efficiently and in a more flexible way. 
To  this  end,  a  smaller  set  of  simpler  “funding  schemes”  should  be  used,  alone  or  in 
combination, with more flexibility and freedom, to support the different actions. 

(21)  Since  the  objective  of  the  actions  to  be  taken  in  accordance  with  Article  163  of  the 
Treaty in contributing towards the creation of a knowledge-based society and economy 
in Europe cannot be sufficiently achieved by the Member States and can therefore be 
better  achieved  at  Community  level,  the  Community  may  adopt  measures,  in 
accordance  with the principle of subsidiarity as set out in Article 5 of  the Treaty. In 
accordance with the principle of proportionality, as set out in that Article, this seventh 
Framework  Programme  does  not  go  beyond  what  is  necessary  in  order  to  achieve 
those objectives. 

7 

As already presented in the Commission Communications COM(2004) 101, 26.0.2004 and COM(2004) 
487, 14.7.2004 on the Financial Perspectives 2007-2013. 

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(22) 

Implementation of the seventh Framework Programme may give rise to supplementary 
programmes  involving  the  participation  of  certain  Member  States  only,  the 
participation of the Community in programmes undertaken by several Member States, 
or  the  setting  up  of  joint  undertakings  or  other  arrangements  within  the  meaning  of 
Articles 168, 169 and 171 of the Treaty.  

(23)  The  Community  has  concluded  a  number  of  international  agreements  in  the  field  of 
research  and  efforts  should  be  made  to  strengthen  international  research  cooperation 
with  a  view  to  further  integrating  the  Community  into  the  world-wide  research 
community. 

(24)  The seventh Framework Programme should contribute towards promoting sustainable 

development and environmental protection.  

(25)  Research  activities  supported  by  this  Framework  Programme  should  respect 
fundamental ethical principles, including those reflected in the Charter of Fundamental 
Rights  of  the  European  Union.  The  opinions  of  the  European  Group  on  Ethics  in 
Science and New Technologies are and will be taken into account. 

(26)  Under  the  seventh  Framework  Programme  due  regard  will  be  paid  to  the  role  of 
women  in  science  and  research  with  a  view  to  further  enhancing  their  active  role  in 
research. 

(27)  This  act  establishes  a  financial  framework  for  the  entire  duration  of  the  programme 
which is to be the principal point of reference for the budgetary authority, within the 
meaning  of  point  […]  of  the  Interinstitutional  Agreement  of  […]  between  the 
European  Parliament,  the  Council  and  the  Commission  on  budgetary  discipline  and 
improvement of the budgetary procedure. 

(28)  Appropriate measures should also be taken to prevent irregularities and fraud and the 
necessary steps should be taken to recover funds lost, wrongly paid or incorrectly used 
in accordance with Council Regulations (EC, Euratom) No 2988/95 of 18 December 
1995  on  the  protection  of  the  European  Communities  financial  interests8,  (EC, 
Euratom)  No  2185/96  of  11  November  1996  concerning  on-the-spot  checks  and 
inspections  carried  out  by  the  Commission  in  order  to  protect  the  European 
Communities’ financial interests against fraud and other irregularities9 and Regulation 
(EC)  No  1073/1999  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council  concerning 
investigations conducted by the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF)10. 

(29) 

It  is  important  to  ensure  sound  financial  management  of  the  seventh  framework 
programme  and  its  implementation  in  the  most  effective  and  user-friendly  manner 
possible,  as  well  as  ease  of  access  for  all  participants.  It  is  necessary  to  ensure 
compliance  with  Council  Regulation  (EC,  EURATOM)  No  1605/2002  of  25  June 
2002  on  the  Financial  Regulation  applicable  to  the  general  budget  of  the  European 
Communities; and with the requirements of simplification and better regulation.  

8 
9 
10 

OJ L 312, 23.12.1995, p. 1. 
OJ L 292, 15.11.1996, p. 2. 
OJ L 136, 31.5.1999, p. 1. 

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HAVE DECIDED AS FOLLOWS: 

Article 1 

Establishment of the Framework Programme 

The  Framework  Programme  for  Community  activities  in  the  area  of  research  and 
technological  development,  including  demonstration  activities,  hereinafter  the  “seventh 
Framework  Programme”  is  hereby  established  for  the  period  from  1  January  2007  to  31 
December 2013. 

(1) 

(2) 

(3) 

(4) 

(5) 

Article 2 

Objectives and activities 

The seventh Framework Programme shall support the activities set out in paragraphs 2 
to 5. The objectives and the broad lines of those activities are set out in Annex I. 

Cooperation:  supporting  the  whole  range  of  research  actions  carried  out  in  trans-
national cooperation in the following thematic areas: 

(a) 

Health; 

(b) 

Food, Agriculture and Biotechnology; 

(c) 

Information and Communication Technologies; 

(d) 

Nanosciences, Nanotechnologies, Materials and new Production Technologies; 

(e) 

Energy; 

(f) 

Environment (including Climate Change); 

(g) 

Transport (including Aeronautics); 

(h) 

Socio-economic Sciences and Humanities; 

(i) 

Security and Space. 

Ideas:  supporting  “investigator-driven”  research  carried  out  across  all  fields  by 
individual teams in competition at the European level. 

People: strengthening, quantitatively and qualitatively, the human potential in research 
and technology in Europe. 

Capacities:  supporting  key  aspects  of  European  research  and  innovation  capacities 
such as research infrastructures; regional research driven clusters; the development of 
a  full  research  potential  in  the  Community’s  convergence  and  outermost  regions; 
research  for  the  benefit  of  small  and  medium  sized  enterprises  (SMEs);  “Science  in 
Society” issues; horizontal activities of international cooperation. 

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(6) 

The seventh Framework Programme shall also support the non-nuclear direct scientific 
and  technical  actions  carried  out  by  the  Joint  Research  Centre  (JRC)  as  defined  in 
Annex I.  

Article 3 

The  seventh  Framework  Programme  shall  be  implemented  through  specific  programmes. 
for 
These  programmes  shall  establish  precise  objectives  and 
implementation. 

the  detailed 

rules 

Article 4  

Maximum overall amount and shares assigned to each programme 

1. 

The maximum overall amount for Community financial participation in this seventh 
Framework  Programme  shall  be  EUR  72726  million.  That  amount  shall  be 
distributed among the activities and actions referred to in paragraphs 2 to 6 of Article 
2 as follows (in EUR million): 

Cooperation 

Ideas 

People 

Capacities 

Non-nuclear actions of the Joint Research 
Centre 

44432 

11862 

7129 

7486 

1817 

2. 

3. 

The  indicative  breakdown  among  the  thematic  areas  of  each  activity  referred  to  in 
paragraph 1 is set out in Annex II. 

The  detailed  rules  for  Community  financial  participation  in  this  Framework 
Programme are set out in Annex III.  

Article 5 

Protection of the Communities’ financial interests 

For  the  Community  actions  financed  under  this  Decision,  Regulation  (EC,  Euratom)  No 
2988/95  and  Regulation  (EC,  Euratom)  No  2185/96  shall  apply  to  any  infringement  of  a 
provision  of  Community  law,  including  infringements  of  a  contractual  obligation  stipulated 
on the basis of the  programme,  resulting from  an act or omission by an economic operator, 
which  has,  or  would  have,  the  effect  of  prejudicing  the  general  budget  of  the  European 
Communities or budgets managed by them, by an unjustified item of expenditure.  

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All  the  research  activities  carried  out  under  the  seventh  Framework  Programme  shall  be 
carried out in compliance with fundamental ethical principles. 

Article 6 

Article 7 

Monitoring, assessment and review 

1. 

2. 

Not later than 2010, the Commission shall carry out, with the assistance of external 
experts,  an  interim  evaluation  of  this  Framework  Programme  and  its  specific 
programmes on the quality of the research activities under way and progress towards 
the objectives set.  

Two years following the completion of this Framework Programme, the Commission 
shall  carry  out  an  external  evaluation  by  independent  experts  of  its  rationale, 
implementation and achievements.  

The  Commission  shall  communicate  the  conclusions  thereof,  accompanied  by  its 
observations, to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and 
Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions. 

Done at Brussels,  

For the European Parliament 
The President 

For the Council 
The President 

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ANNEX I 

SCIENTIFIC AND TECHNOLOGICAL OBJECTIVES, BROAD LINES OF THE 
THEMES AND ACTIVITIES 

The seventh Framework Programme will be carried out to pursue the general objectives 
described  in  Article  163  of  the  Treaty  in  contributing  towards  the  creation  of  a 
knowledge-based  society,  building  on  a  European  Research  Area.  It  shall  strengthen 
in  scientific  and  technological  research  through  the  following  four 
excellence 
programmes: cooperation, ideas, people and capacities. 

I 

COOPERATION  

In this part of the 7th Framework Programme, support will be provided to trans-national co-
operation at every scale across the European Union and beyond, in a number of thematic areas 
corresponding  to  major  fields  of the progress of knowledge and technology, where research 
must be supported and strengthened to address European social, economic, environmental and 
industrial challenges.  

The overarching aim is to contribute to sustainable development.  

The nine themes determined for EU action are the following: 

(1) 

Health; 

(2) 

Food, Agriculture and Biotechnology; 

(3) 

Information and Communication Technologies; 

(4) 

Nanosciences, Nanotechnologies, Materials and new Production 
Technologies; 

(5) 

Energy; 

(6) 

Environment (including Climate Change); 

(7) 

Transport (including Aeronautics); 

(8) 

Socio-economic Sciences and the Humanities; 

(9) 

Security and Space.   

These themes are broadly defined at relatively high level, such that they can adapt to evolving 
needs and opportunities that may arise during the lifetime of the 7th Framework Programme. 
For  each  of  them,  a  series  of  activities  have  been  identified  which  indicate  the  broad  lines 
envisaged  for  Community  support.  These  have  been  identified  on  the  basis  of  their 
contribution  to  EU  objectives,  including  the  transition  to  a  knowledge  society,  the  relevant 
European research potential and the added value of EU level intervention for these subjects.  

Special  attention  will  be  paid  to  priority  scientific  areas  which  cut  across  themes,  such  as 
marine sciences and technologies. 

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Pluridisciplinarity  will  be  encouraged  by  joint  cross-thematic  approaches  to  research  and 
technology subjects relevant to more than one theme. 

In  the  case  of  subjects  of  industrial  relevance  in  particular,  the  topics  have  been  identified 
relying, among other sources, on the work of different “European Technology Platforms” set 
up  in  fields  where  Europe’s  competitiveness,  economic  growth  and  welfare  depend  on 
important  research  and  technological  progress  in  the  medium  to  long  term.  European 
Technology Platforms bring together stakeholders, under industrial leadership, to define and 
implement a Strategic Research Agenda.  This Framework Programme  will contribute to the 
realisation  of  these  Strategic  Research  Agendas  where  these  present  true  European  added 
value. 

The  nine  themes  also  include  research  needed  to  underpin  the  formulation,  implementation 
and  assessment  of  EU  policies,  such  as  in  the  areas  of  health,  safety,  consumer  protection, 
energy,  the  environment,  development  aid,  fisheries,  maritime  affairs,  agriculture,  animal 
welfare,  transport,  education  and  training,  employment,  social  affairs,  cohesion,  and  justice 
and home affairs, along with pre-normative and co-normative research relevant to improving 
the quality of standards and their implementation. 

Under each theme, beside these activities, the possibility will be ensured to address two types 
of opportunities and needs in an open and flexible way: 

•  Emerging  needs:  through  specific  support  for  spontaneous  research  proposals 
aiming  at  identifying  or  further  exploring,  in  a  given  field  and/or  at  the 
intersection of several disciplines, new scientific and technological opportunities, 
in particular linked with a potential for significant breakthroughs;  

•  Unforeseen policy needs: to respond in a flexible way to new policy needs that 
arise  during  the  course  of  the  Framework  Programme,  such  as  unforeseen 
developments  or  events  requiring  a  quick  reaction  like,  the  new  epidemics, 
emerging concerns in food safety or natural disaster response. 

In order to strengthen the diffusion and use of the output of EU research, the dissemination of 
knowledge  and  transfer  of  results,  including  to  policy  makers,  will  be  supported  in  all 
thematic areas, including through the funding of networking initiatives, seminars and events, 
assistance by external experts and information and electronic services in particular CORDIS. 
Actions  to  support  innovation  will  be  taken  under  the  Competitiveness  and  Innovation 
Programme. Support will also be provided to initiatives aiming at engaging the dialogue on 
scientific issues and research results with a broad public beyond the research community, and 
in the field of scientific communication and education. Ethical principles and gender aspects 
will be taken into account.  

Across all these themes, support to trans-national cooperation will be implemented through: 

•  Collaborative research; 

•  Joint Technology Initiatives; 

•  Co-ordination of research programmes; 

•  International Co-operation.  

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Collaborative research 

Collaborative  research  will  constitute  the  bulk  and  the  core  of  EU  research  funding.  The 
objective is to establish, in the major fields of advancement of knowledge, excellent research 
projects and networks able to attract researchers and investments from Europe and the entire 
world.  

This  will  be  achieved  by  supporting  collaborative  research  through  a  range  of  funding 
schemes: Collaborative projects, Networks of Excellence, Co-ordination/support actions (see 
Annex III). 

Joint Technology Initiatives  

In  a  limited  number  of  cases,  the  scope  of  a  RTD  objective  and  the  scale  of  the  resources 
involved  justify  setting  up  long  term  public  private  partnerships  in  the  form  of  Joint 
Technology  Initiatives.  These  initiatives,  mainly  resulting  from  the  work  of  European 
Technology Platforms and covering one or a small number of selected aspects of research in 
their field, will combine private sector investment and national and European public funding, 
including grant funding from the Research Framework Programme and loan finance from the 
European  Investment  Bank.  Joint  Technology  Initiatives  may  be  decided  on  the  basis  of 
Article 171 of the Treaty (this may include the creation of a joint undertaking) or on the basis 
of the Specific Programme Decisions in accordance with Article 166 of the Treaty. 

Potential  Joint  Technology  Initiatives  will  be  identified  on  the  basis  of  a  series  of  criteria 
including:  

– 

– 

– 

– 

– 

– 

Added value of European-level intervention. 

The degree and clarity of definition of the objective to be pursued.  

Strength of the financial and resource commitment from industry.  

Scale of the impact on industrial competitiveness and growth.  

Importance of the contribution to broader policy objectives.  

Capacity  to  attract  additional  national  support  and  leverage  current  or  future 
industry funding. 

– 

Inability of existing instruments to achieve the objective.  

Particular  attention  will  be  paid  to  the  overall  coherence  and  coordination  between  Joint 
Technology Initiatives and national programmes and projects in the same fields. 

Co-ordination of non-Community research programmes  

The action undertaken in this field will make use of two main tools: the ERA-NET scheme 
and the participation of the Community in jointly implemented national research programmes 
(Treaty Article 169). The action may cover subjects not directly linked to the nine themes in 
as far as they have a sufficient EU added value. The action will also be used to enhance the 

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complementary and synergy between the Framework Programme and activities carried out in 
the framework of intergovernmental structures such as EUREKA and COST11. 

The ERA-NET scheme will develop and strengthen the coordination of national and regional 
research activities by:  

– 

– 

Providing a framework for actors implementing public research programmes to 
step  up  the  coordination  of  their  activities.  This  will  include  support  for  new 
ERA-NETs  as  well  as  for  the  broadening  and  deepening  of  the  scope  of 
existing  ERA-NETs,  e.g.  by  extending  their  partnership,  as  well  as  opening 
mutually their programmes;  

Providing  additional  EU  financial  support  to  those  participants  that  create  a 
common  fund  for  the  purpose  of  joint  calls  for  proposals  between  their 
respective national and regional programmes (“ERA-NET PLUS”). 

The participation of the Community in national research programmes jointly implemented on 
the  basis  of  Article  169  is  especially  relevant  to  European  co-operation  on  a  large  scale  in 
“variable  geometry”  between  Member  States  sharing  common  needs  and/or  interests.  Such 
Article 169 initiatives will be launched in areas to be identified in close association with the 
Member  States,  including  the  possible  cooperation  with  intergovernmental  programmes,  on 
the basis of a series of criteria: 

– 

– 

– 

– 

– 

– 

Relevance to EU objectives.  

The  clear  definition  of  the  objective  to  be  pursued  and  its  relevance  to  the 
objectives of this Framework Programme. 

Presence  of  a  pre-existing  basis  (national  research  programmes  existing  or 
envisaged).  

European added value. 

Critical mass, with regard to the size and the number of programmes involved, 
the similarity of activities they cover. 

Efficiency  of  Article  169  as  the  most  appropriate  means  for  achieving  the 
objectives. 

International co-operation 

International cooperation actions under this part of the Framework Programme will be: 

•  The  opening  of  all  activities  carried  out  in  the  thematic  areas  to  researchers  and 
research  institutions  from  all  third  countries,  with  a  strong  effort  to  encourage 
them to seize this opportunity.  

•  Specific co-operation actions in each thematic area dedicated to third countries in 
the case of mutual interest in co-operating on particular topics. Closely associated 

11 

This will include financial support for the administration and coordination activities of COST. 

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with  the  bilateral  co-operation  agreements  or  multilateral  dialogues  between  the 
EU  and  these  countries  or  groups  of  countries,  these  actions  will  serve  as 
privileged  tools  for  implementing  the  co-operation  between  the  EU  and  these 
countries.  Such  actions  are,  in  particular:  actions  aiming  at  reinforcing  the 
research  capacities  of  candidate  countries  as  well  as  neighbourhood  countries; 
cooperative activities targeted at developing and emerging countries, focusing on 
their  particular  needs  in  fields  such  as  health,  agriculture,  fisheries  and 
environment, and implemented in financial conditions adapted to their capacities. 

This part of the Framework Programme covers the international co-operation actions in each 
thematic area and across themes. They will be implemented in coordination with those under 
the “People” and the “Capacities” part of the Framework Programme. 

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THEMES 

1. 

Health 

Objective  

Improving  the  health  of  European  citizens  and  increasing  the  competitiveness  of 
European health-related industries and businesses, while addressing global health issues 
including  emerging  epidemics.  Emphasis  will  be  put  on  translational  research 
(translation of basic discoveries in clinical applications), the development and validation 
of  new  therapies,  methods  for  health  promotion  and  prevention,  diagnostic  tools  and 
technologies, as well as sustainable and efficient healthcare systems.  

Rationale  

The  sequencing  of  the  human  genome  and  the  recent  advances  in  post-genomics  have 
revolutionised research into human health and diseases. Integrating the vast amounts of data 
and understanding underlying biological processes requires bringing together critical masses 
of  various  expertises  and  resources  that  are  not  available  at  a  national  level.  Significant 
advances in translational health research, which is essential to ensure that biomedical research 
provides  practical  benefits,  also  requires  multidisciplinary  and  pan-European  approaches 
involving different stakeholders. Such approaches allow Europe to contribute more effectively 
to international efforts to combat diseases of global importance. 

Clinical  research  on  many  diseases  (e.g.  cancer,  cardiovascular  diseases,  mental  and 
neurological diseases, in particular those linked with ageing, such as Alzheimer and Parkinson 
diseases) relies on international multi-centre trials to achieve the required number of patients 
in a short time-frame. Epidemiological research requires a large diversity of populations and 
international  networks  to  achieve  significant  conclusions.  Developing  new  diagnostics  and 
treatments for rare disorders also require multi-country approaches to increase the number of 
patients for each study. And performing health policy-driven research at the European level 
enables  comparisons  of  the  models,  systems,  data,  and  patient  material  held  in  national 
databases and biobanks. 

A  strong  EU-based  biomedical  research  will  help  strengthen  the  competitiveness  of  the 
European  healthcare  biotechnology,  medical  technology  and  pharmaceutical  industries.  The 
EU also has to play an active role in creating an environment conducive to innovation in the 
pharmaceutical  sector,  in  particular  to  maximise  the  success  of  clinical  research.  Research-
based  SMEs  are  the  main  economic  drivers  of  the  healthcare  biotechnology  and  medical 
technology  industries.  Although  Europe  now  has  more  Biotechnology  companies  than  US, 
most of them are small and less mature than their competitors. Public-private research efforts 
at  the  EU  level  will  facilitate  their  development.  EU  research  will  also  contribute  to  the 
development of new norms and standards to set up an appropriate legislative framework for 
new medical technologies (e.g. regenerative medicine). 

The activities that will be addressed, which include research essential to policy requirements, 
are set out below. Two strategic issues, child health and the health of the ageing population 
will  be  addressed  across  activities.  Research  agendas  established  by  European  Technology 
Platforms,  such  as  the  one  on  innovative  medicines,  will  be  supported  where  relevant.  To 
complement these and respond to new policy needs, additional actions may be supported for 
example in the areas of health policy issues and occupational health and safety. 

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Activities  

•  Biotechnology, generic tools and technologies for human health.  

–  High-throughput  research.  To  catalyse  experimental  progress  in  biomedical  research  by 

enhancing data generation, standardisation, acquisition and analysis. 

–  Detection,  diagnosis  and  monitoring.  With  emphasis  on  non-invasive  or  minimally 

invasive approaches. 

–  Predicting suitability, safety and efficacy of therapies. To develop and validate biological 
including  simulation, 

markers, 
pharmacogenomics, targeting approaches and alternatives to animal testing.  

in  vitro  methods  and  models, 

in  vivo  and 

–  Innovative  therapeutic  approaches  and  intervention.  To  consolidate  and  ensure  further 
developments  in  advanced  therapies  and  technologies  with  potential  application  in  many 
diseases and disorders. 

•  Translating research for human health 

–  Integrating biological data and processes: large-scale data gathering, systems biology. To 
generate  and  analyse  the  vast  amount  of  data  needed  to  understand  better  the  complex 
regulatory  networks  of  thousands  of  genes  and  gene-products  controlling  important 
biological processes. 

–  Research  on  the  brain  and  related  diseases,  human  development  and  ageing.  To  explore 
the  process  of  healthy  ageing  and  the  way  genes  and  environment  interact  with  brain 
activity, under normal conditions as well as in brain diseases. 

–  Translational  research  in  infectious  diseases.  To  address  anti-microbial  drug  resistance, 
the  global  threats  of  HIV/AIDS,  malaria  and  tuberculosis  as  well  as  emerging  epidemics 
(e.g. SARS and highly pathogenic influenza). 

–  Translational 

research 

cardiovascular  disease, 
diabetes/obesity;  rare  diseases;  and  other  chronic  diseases  (e.g.  osteoarthritis).  To 
develop  patient-oriented  strategies  from  prevention  to  diagnosis  and  treatment  including 
clinical research. 

in  major  diseases: 

cancer, 

•  Optimising the delivery of health care to European citizens 

–  Translating clinical outcome into clinical practice. To understand clinical decision-making 
and  how  to  translate  outcomes  of  clinical  research  into  clinical  practice  and  especially 
addressing the specificities of children, women and elderly population. 

–  Quality,  efficiency  and  solidarity  of  health  systems  including  transitional  health  systems. 
To  translate  effective  interventions  into  management  decisions,  to  ensure  an  adequate 
supply of human resources, to analyse factors influencing equity of access to high quality 
health  care,  including  analyses  of  changes  in  population  (e.g.  ageing,  mobility  and 
migration, and the changing workplace). 

–  Enhanced  disease  prevention  and  better  use  of  medicines.  To  develop  efficient  public 
health  interventions  addressing  wider  determinants  of  health  (such  as  stress,  diet  or 

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environmental factors). To identify successful interventions in different health care settings 
for improving the prescription of medicines and improving their use by patients (including 
pharmacovigilence aspects). 

–  Appropriate  use  of  new  health  therapies  and  technologies.  Long  term  safety  aspects  and 
monitoring  of  large  scale  use  of  new  medical  technologies  (including  devices)  and 
advanced therapies ensuring a high level of protection for public health.  

2. 

Food, Agriculture and Biotechnology 

Objective  

Building  a  European  Knowledge  Based  Bio-Economy12  by  bringing  together  science, 
industry  and  other  stakeholders,  to  exploit  new  and  emerging  research  opportunities 
that  address  social  and  economic  challenges:  the  growing  demand  for  safer,  healthier 
and  higher  quality  food  and  for  sustainable  use  and  production  of  renewable  bio-
resources;  the  increasing  risk  of  epizootic  and  zoonotic  diseases  and  food  related 
disorders;  threats  to  the  sustainability  and  security  of  agricultural  and  fisheries 
production resulting in particular from climate change; and the increasing demand for 
high quality food, taking into account animal welfare and rural contexts.  

Rationale  

Innovations  and  advancement  of  knowledge  in  the  sustainable  management,  production  and 
use of biological resources (micro-organism, plants, animals), will provide the basis for new, 
sustainable,  eco-efficient  and  competitive  products  for  agriculture,  fisheries,  food,  health, 
forest  based  and  related  industries.  In  line  with  the  European  strategy  on  life  sciences  and 
biotechnology13,  this  will  help  increase  the  competitiveness  of  European  biotechnology  and 
food companies, in particular high tech SMEs, while improving social welfare and well-being. 
Research into the safety of food and feed chains, diet related diseases, food choices and the 
impact of food and nutrition on health will help to fight food related disorders (e.g. obesity, 
allergies) and infectious diseases (e.g. transmissible spongiform encephalopathies, avian-flu), 
while making important contributions to the implementation of existing and the formulation 
of future policies and regulations in the area of public, animal and plant health and consumer 
protection.  

The diversity of the European industries in these areas, while being one of its strengths and an 
opportunity, leads to fragmented approaches to similar problems. These are better addressed 
by  increased  collaboration  and  sharing  of  expertise,  for  example  on  new  methodologies, 
processes and standards that result from changing EU legislation.  

Several European Technology Platforms contribute in setting common research priorities, in 
fields such as plant genomics and biotechnology, forestry and forest based industries, global 
animal  health,  farm  animal  breeding,  food  and  industrial  biotechnology.  The  research  will 

12 

13 

The  term  “bio-economy”  includes  all  industries  and  economic  sectors  that  produce,  manage  and 
otherwise  exploit  biological  resources  and  related  services,  supply  or  consumer  industries,  such  as 
agriculture, food, fisheries, forestry, etc. 
“Life Sciences and biotechnology – A strategy for Europe” - COM(2002) 27. 

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also  provide  the  knowledge  base  needed  to  support14:  the  Common  Agricultural  Policy; 
agriculture  and  trade  issues;  food  safety  regulations;  Community  animal  health,  disease 
control  and  welfare  standards;  and  the  Common  Fisheries  Policy  reform  aiming  to  provide 
sustainable development of fishing and aquaculture. A flexible response to new policy needs 
is also foreseen, in particular with respect to new social or economic trends.  

Activities  

•  Sustainable  production  and  management  of  biological  resources  from  land,  forest, 
and  aquatic  environments:  Enabling  research,  including  'omics'  technologies,  such  as 
genomics,  proteomics,  metabolomics,  systems  biology  and  converging  technologies  for 
micro-organisms, plants and animals, including exploitation of their biodiversity; improved 
crops and production systems, including organic farming, quality production schemes and 
GMO impacts; sustainable, competitive and multifunctional agriculture, and forestry; rural 
development;  animal  welfare,  breeding  and  production;  plant  health;  sustainable  and 
competitive fisheries and aquaculture; infectious diseases in animals, including zoonoses; 
safe disposal of animal waste; conservation, management and exploitation of living aquatic 
resources, developing the tools needed by policy makers and other actors in agriculture and 
rural development (landscape, land management practices etc.). 

•  “Fork to farm”: Food, health and well being: Consumer, societal, industrial and health 
aspects  of  food  and  feed,  including  behavioural  and  cognitive  sciences;  nutrition,  diet 
related  diseases  and  disorders,  including  obesity;  innovative  food  and  feed  processing 
technologies  (including  packaging);  improved  quality  and  safety,  both  chemical  and 
microbiological,  of  food,  beverage  and  feed;  integrity  (and  control)  of  the  food  chain; 
environmental  impacts  on  and  of  food/feed  chains;  total  food  chain  concept  (including 
seafood); traceability. 

•  Life  sciences  and  biotechnology  for  sustainable  non-food  products  and  processes: 
Improved  crops,  feed-stocks,  marine  products  and  biomass  (including  marine  resources) 
for energy, environment, and high added value products such as materials and chemicals, 
including  novel  farming  systems,  bio-processes  and  bio-refinery  concepts;  bio-catalysis; 
forestry  and  forest  based  products  and  processes;  environmental  remediation  and  cleaner 
processing. 

3. 

Information and Communication Technologies 

Objective 

To  enable  Europe  to  master  and  shape  the  future  developments  of  Information  and 
Communication Technologies (ICT) so that the demands of its society and economy are 
met. Activities will strengthen Europe’s scientific and technology base in ICT, help drive 
and  stimulate  innovation  through  ICT  use  and  ensure  that  ICT  progress  is  rapidly 
transformed into benefits for Europe’s citizens, businesses, industry and governments. 

14 

Complementary research relating to the sustainable management and conservation of natural resources 
is addressed under the “Environment (including Climate Change)” theme. 

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Rationale 

Information and Communication Technologies are critical to Europe’s future and underpin the 
realisation  of  the  Lisbon  agenda.  Half  of  the  productivity  gains  in  our  economies  are 
explained  by  the  impact  of  ICT  on  products,  services  and  business  processes.  ICT  is  the 
leading factor in boosting innovation and creativity and in mastering change in value chains 
across industry and service sectors. ICT is essential to meet the rise in demand for health and 
social  care  and  to  modernise  services  in  domains  of  public  interest  such  as  education, 
learning, security, energy, transport and the environment. And ICT is catalytic in the advance 
of  other  fields  of  science  and  technology  as it  transforms  the  way  researchers  conduct  their 
research, co-operate and innovate. 

The escalating economic and societal demands, together with the continued mainstreaming of 
ICT and the need to push further the technology limits set a growing agenda for research. To 
bring  technology  closer  to  people  and  organisational  needs  means:  hiding  technology 
complexity  and  revealing  functionality  on  demand;  making  technology  very  simple  to  use, 
available  and  affordable;  providing  new  ICT-based  applications,  solutions  and  services  that 
are  trusted,  reliable,  and  adaptable  to  the  users’  context  and  preferences.  Driven  by  the 
demand  of  more-for-less,  ICT  researchers  are  involved  in  a  global  race  to  achieve  further 
miniaturisation,  to  master  the  convergence  of  computing,  communications  and  media 
technologies, and the convergence with other relevant sciences and disciplines, and to build 
systems  that  are  able  to  learn  and  evolve.  From  these  diverse  efforts  a  new  wave  of 
technologies  is  emerging.  ICT  research  activities  will  also  draw  on  a  broader  range  of 
scientific  and  technological  disciplines  including  bio-  and  life  sciences,  psychology, 
pedagogy, cognitive and social sciences. 

ICT  is  one  the  most  research  intensive  sectors.  The  ICT  research  effort,  public  and  private, 
represents a third of the total research effort in all major economies. Although Europe already 
enjoys  industrial  and  technological  leadership  in  key  ICT  fields  it  lags  in  investing  in  ICT 
research behind its major competitors. Only through a renewed and more intensive pooling of 
the  effort  at  European  level  will  we  be  able  to  make  the  most  of  the  opportunities  that 
progress in ICT can offer.  

The ICT research activities will be closely articulated with policy actions for ICT deployment 
and  with  regulatory  measures  within  a  comprehensive  and  holistic  strategy.  Priorities  have 
been  set  following  extensive  consultations  including  input  from  a  series  of  European 
Technology Platforms and industrial initiatives in areas such as nano-electronics, embedded 
systems, mobile communications, electronic media, robotics and software, services and Grids.  

Activities 

•  ICT Technology Pillars: 

–  Nano-electronics,  photonics  and  integrated  micro/nano-systems.  pushing  the  limits  of 
miniaturisation, 
increasing  performance  and 
manufacturability at lower cost; facilitating incorporation of ICT in range of applications; 
interfaces; upstream research requiring exploration of new concepts. 

integration,  variety  and  density; 

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–  Ubiquitous  and  unlimited  capacity  communication  networks:  ubiquitous  access  over 
heterogeneous  networks  -  fixed,  mobile,  wireless  and  broadcasting  networks  spanning 
from the personal area to the regional and global area - allowing the seamless delivery of 
ever higher volumes of data and services anywhere, anytime. 

–  Embedded  systems,  computing  and  control:  powerful,  secure  and  distributed  computing 
and communication systems that are embedded in objects and physical infrastructures and 
that can control and adapt to their environment. 

–  Software,  Grids,  security  and  dependability:  dynamic,  adaptive,  dependable  and  trusted 
software  and  services,  and  new  processing  architectures,  including  their  provision  as  a 
utility.  

–  Knowledge,  cognitive  and  learning  systems:  capturing  and  exploiting  knowledge 
embedded  in  web  and  multimedia  content;  bio-inspired  artificial  systems  that  perceive, 
understand,  learn  and  evolve,  and  act  autonomously;  learning  by  machines  and  humans 
based on a better understanding of human cognition. 

–  Simulation, visualisation, interaction and mixed realities: tools for innovative design and 
creativity  in  products,  services  and  digital  media,  and  for  natural,  language-enabled  and 
context-rich interaction and communication. 

New  perspectives  in  ICT  drawing  on  other  science  and  technology  disciplines,  including 
insights from physics, biotechnologies, materials- and life-sciences, for miniaturisation of ICT 
devices to sizes compatible and interacting with living organisms, to increase performance of 
systems  engineering  and  information  processing,  and  for  modelling  and  simulation  of  the 
living world. 

•  Integration of Technologies:  

–  Personal  environments:  personal  communication  and  computing  devices,  accessories, 

wearables, implants; their interfaces and interconnections to services and resources.  

–  Home  environments:  communication,  monitoring,  control,  assistance; 
interoperability and use of all devices; interactive digital content and services.  

seamless 

–  Robotic  systems:  advanced  autonomous  systems;  cognition,  control,  action  skills,  natural 

interaction; miniaturisation.  

–  Intelligent  infrastructures:  tools  making  infrastructures  that  are  critical  to  everyday  life 
more efficient, easier to adapt and maintain, more robust to usage and resistant to failures. 

•  Applications Research: 

–  ICT  meeting  societal  challenges:  New  systems  and  services  in  areas  of  public  interest 
improving  quality,  efficiency,  access  and  inclusiveness;  user  friendly  applications, 
integration of new technologies and initiatives such as ambient assisted living. 

– 

for  health, 
improving  disease  prevention,  early  diagnosis  and 
personalisation;  autonomy,  safety  and  mobility  of  patients;  health 
information space for knowledge discovery. 

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– 

– 

– 

– 

to improve inclusion and equal participation and prevent digital divides; 
assistive technology; design-for-all.  

for  mobility;  intelligent  ICT-based  transportation  systems  and  vehicles 
enabling people and goods to move safely, comfortably and efficiently. 

in  support  of  the  environment  and  sustainable  development,  to  reduce 
vulnerability  and  to  mitigate  the  consequences  of  natural  disasters  and 
industrial accidents.  

for  governments;  efficiency,  openness  and  accountability,  for  a  world-
class  public  administration  and  links  to  citizens  and  businesses, 
supporting democracy. 

–  ICT for content, creativity and personal development:  

– 

– 

– 

new  media paradigms and new forms of content; creation of interactive 
digital  content;  enriched  user  experiences;  cost-effective  content 
delivery.  

technology-enhanced  learning;  adaptive  and  contextualised  learning 
solutions; active learning.  

ICT-based  systems  to  support  accessibility  and  use  over  time  of  digital 
cultural resources and assets, in a multilingual environment 

–  ICT supporting businesses and industry: 

– 

new forms of dynamic networked co-operative business processes, digital 
eco-systems;  optimised  work  organisation  and  collaborative  work 
environments. 

–  Manufacturing:  rapid  and  adaptive  design,  production  and  delivery  of 
highly  customised  goods;  digital  and  virtual  production;  modelling, 
simulation and presentation tools; miniature and integrated ICT products; 

–  ICT  for  trust  and  confidence:  identity  management;  authentication  and  authorization; 
privacy  enhancing  technologies;  rights  and  asset  management;  protection  against  cyber 
threats. 

•  Future and Emerging Technologies: to support research at the frontier of knowledge in 
core  ICTs  and  in  their  combination  with  other  relevant  areas  and  disciplines;  to  nurture 
novel ideas and radically new uses and to explore new options in ICT research roadmaps. 

4. 

Nanosciences, Nanotechnologies, Materials and new Production Technologies  

Objective  

Improve the competitiveness of European industry and ensure its transformation from a 
resource-intensive  to  a  knowledge-intensive  industry,  by  generating  breakthrough 
knowledge  for  new  applications  at  the  crossroads  between  different  technologies  and 
disciplines.  

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Rationale  

The decline in industrial activities appears no longer to be limited to traditional sectors with a 
high  labour  intensity,  but  is  beginning  to  be  observed  in  intermediate  sectors  –  which 
constitute the established strengths of European industry – and even in some high-technology 
sectors.  This  trend  can  and  must  be  reversed  by  building,  in  Europe,  a  strong  knowledge-
based, knowledge intensive industry. This will include the modernisation of the existing SME 
base and the creation of new knowledge-driven SMEs, from the dissemination of knowledge 
and expertise through collaborative programmes. 

The  EU  has  recognised  leadership  in  fields  such  as  in  nanotechnologies,  materials  and 
production technologies which must be strengthened in order to secure and increase the EU 
position in a highly competitive global context.  

European  Technology  Platforms  in  fields  such  as  nanoelectronics,  manufacturing,  steel, 
chemistry, the transport industry, construction, industrial safety, textiles, pulp and paper help 
establish common research priorities and targets. In addition to industry relevant priorities and 
their integration for sectoral applications,, the relevant policy, regulatory and standardisation, 
and impact issues will be addressed, including by responding flexibly to new policy needs that 
arise. 

Activities  

•  Nanosciences, Nanotechnologies 

–  Generating new knowledge on interface and size dependent phenomena; nano-scale control 
of material  properties  for  new  applications; integration of technologies at the nano-scale; 
self-assembling  properties;  nano-motors;  nano-machines  and  nano-systems;  methods  and 
tools  for  characterisation  and  manipulation  at  nano  dimensions;  nano  and  high-precision 
technologies  in  chemistry;  impact  on  human  safety,  health  and  the  environment; 
metrology,  nomenclature  and  standards;  exploration  of  new  concepts  and  approaches  for 
sectoral applications, including the integration and convergence of emerging technologies. 

•  Materials  

–  Generating  new  knowledge  on  high-performance  materials  for  new  products  and 
processes;  knowledge-based  materials  with  tailored  properties;  more  reliable  design  and 
simulation;  higher  complexity;  environmental  compatibility; 
integration  of  nano-
molecular-macro  levels  in  the  chemical  technology  and  materials  processing  industries; 
new  nano-materials,  bio-materials  and  hybrid  materials,  including  design  and  control  of 
their processing. 

•  New Production  

–  Creating conditions and assets for knowledge-intensive production, including construction, 
development  and  validation  of  new  paradigms  responding  to  emerging  industrial  needs; 
development  of  generic  production  assets  for  adaptive,  networked  and  knowledge-based 
production;  development  of  new  engineering  concepts  exploiting  the  convergence  of 
technologies (eg, nano, bio, info, cognitive and their engineering requirements) for the next 
generation  of  high  value-added  products  and  services,  and  adaptation  to  the  changing 
needs. 

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•  Integration of technologies for industrial applications 

–  Integrating new knowledge and technologies on nano, materials and production in sectoral 
and cross sectoral applications such as: health, construction, transport, energy, chemistry, 
environment, textiles and clothing, pulp and paper, mechanical engineering. 

5. 

Energy 

Objective 

Transforming  the  current  fossil-fuel  based  energy  system  into  a  more  sustainable  one 
based  on  a  diverse  portfolio  of  energy  sources  and  carriers  combined  with  enhanced 
energy  efficiency,  to  address  the  pressing  challenges  of  security  of  supply  and  climate 
change, whilst increasing the competitiveness of Europe’s energy industries. 

Rationale 

Energy systems are confronted with major challenges. The urgency to develop adequate and 
timely solutions is justified by the alarming trends in global energy demand (predicted to rise 
by 60% in the next 30 years), the need to curb dramatically emissions of greenhouse gases to 
mitigate the devastating consequences of climate change, the damaging volatility of oil prices 
(in  particular  for  the  transport  sector  which  is  heavily  oil  dependent)  and  geopolitical 
instability  in  supplier  regions.  Research  and  demonstration  are  needed  to  provide  the  most 
environmentally  and  cost-effective  technologies  and  measures  enabling  the  EU  to  meet  its 
targets  under  the  Kyoto  Protocol  and  beyond  and  to  implement  its  energy  policy 
commitments, as described in the 2000 Green Paper on the security of energy supply15.  

Europe has developed world leadership in a number of energy technologies. It is the pioneer 
in  modern  renewable  energy  technologies,  such  as  bio-energy  and  wind  energy.  The  EU  is 
also  a  global  competitor  in  power  generation  and  distribution  technologies  and  has  a  strong 
research capability in the area of carbon capture and sequestration. These positions, however, 
are under severe threat from competition (in particular from the US and Japan).  

Radically  transforming  the  energy  system  requires  new  technologies  with  risks  that  are  too 
high and the benefits too uncertain for private firms to provide all the investment needed for 
research, development, demonstration and deployment. Public support should therefore play a 
key  role  in  mobilising  private  investment  and  European  efforts  and  resources  should  be 
combined  in  a  coherent  and  more  effective  manner,  to  compete  with  economies  that  are 
investing  heavily  and  consistently  in  similar  technologies.  European  technology  platforms 
play  a  vital  role  in  this  regard,  by  mobilising  the  necessary  research  effort  in  a  coordinated 
manner.  The  activities  to  meet  the  objective  are  set  out  below.  A  specific  activity  on 
knowledge  for  energy  policy  making  is  included  which  may  also  provide  support  to  new 
policy  needs  that  emerge,  for  example  relating  to  the  role  of  European  energy  policy  in  the 
developments  of  international  climate  change  actions,  and  instabilities  or  disruptions  in 
energy supply and price. 

15 

COM(2000) 769. 

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Activities 

•  Hydrogen and fuel cells 

Integrated  action  to  provide  a  strong  technological  foundation  for  competitive  EU  fuel  cell 
and  hydrogen  industries,  for  stationary,  portable  and  transport  applications.  The  Hydrogen 
and Fuel Cells European Technology Platform helps this activity by proposing an integrated 
research and deployment strategy. 

•  Renewable electricity generation 

Technologies  to  increase  overall  conversion  efficiency,  driving  down  the  cost  of  electricity 
production  from  indigenous  renewable  energy  sources,  and  the  development  and  the 
demonstration of technologies suited to different regional conditions.  

•  Renewable fuel production 

Integrated  conversion  technologies:  to  develop and  drive  down  the  unit cost  of  solid,  liquid 
and gaseous (including hydrogen) fuels produced from renewable energy sources, aiming at 
the cost-effective production and use of carbon-neutral fuels, in particular liquid biofuels for 
transport. 

•  Renewables for heating and cooling 

Technologies  to  increase  efficiencies  and  drive  down  the  costs  of  heating  and  cooling  from 
renewable energy sources, ensuring their use in different regional conditions.  

•  CO2 capture and storage technologies for zero emission power generation 

To  drastically  reduce  the  environmental  impact  of  fossil  fuel  use  aiming  at  highly  efficient 
power  generation  plants  with  near  zero  emissions,  based  on  CO2  capture  and  storage 
technologies.  

•  Clean coal technologies 

To  substantially  improve  plant  efficiency,  reliability  and  cost  through  development  and 
demonstration of clean coal conversion technologies.  

•  Smart energy networks 

To increase the efficiency, safety and reliability of the European electricity and gas systems 
and  networks  e.g.  by  transforming  the  current  electricity  grids  into  an  interactive 
(customers/operators) service network and to remove obstacles to the large-scale deployment 
and effective integration of distributed and renewable energy sources. 

•  Energy efficiency and savings  

New  concepts  and  technologies  to  improve  energy  efficiency  and  savings  for  buildings, 
services and industry. This includes the integration of strategies and technologies for energy 
efficiency,  the  use  of  new  and  renewable  energy  technologies  and  energy  demand 
management.  

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•  Knowledge for energy policy making  

Development  of  tools,  methods  and  models  to  assess  the  main  economic  and  social  issues 
related to energy technologies and to provide quantifiable targets  and scenarios for  medium 
and long term horizons. 

6. 

Environment (including Climate Change) 

Objective 

Sustainable  management  of  the  environment  and  its  resources  through  advancing  our 
knowledge on the interactions between the biosphere, ecosystems and human activities, 
and developing new technologies, tools and services, in order to address in an integrated 
way  global  environmental  issues  .  Emphasis  will  be  put  on  prediction  of  climate, 
ecological, earth and ocean systems changes;  on  tools and technologies for  monitoring, 
prevention and mitigation of environmental pressures and risks including on health, as 
well as for the conservation of the natural and man-made environment. 

Rationale 

Environmental problems go beyond national frontiers and require a coordinated approach at a 
pan-European  and  often  global  level.  Earth’s  natural  resources  and  the  man-made 
environment  are  under  intense  pressures  from  growing  population,  urbanisation,  continuous 
expansion of the agriculture, transport and energy sectors, as well as climate variability and 
warming  at  local,  regional  and  global  scales.  Europe  needs  to  engage  in  a  new  sustainable 
relationship  with  the  environment  while  improving  competitiveness  and  strengthening 
European  industry.  EU-wide  cooperation  is  needed  to  attain  critical  mass  given  the  scale, 
scope and high level of complexity of environmental research. It facilitates common planning, 
the use of connected and inter-operable databases, and the development of coherent and large 
scale observation and forecasting systems.  

Research is needed at EU level for the implementation of international commitments such as 
the Kyoto protocol, the UN Convention on Biological Diversity, the objectives of the World 
Summit  on  Sustainable  Development  2002,  including  the  EU  Water  Initiative,  and 
contributions  to  the  Intergovernmental  Panel  on  Climate  Change  and  the  Earth  Observation 
initiative. In addition there are significant research needs arising from existing and emerging 
EU  level  policies,  the  implementation  of  the  6th  Environmental  Action  Plan  and  associated 
thematic  strategies,  the  action  plans  on  Environmental  Technologies  and  Environment  and 
Health, and Directives such as the Water Framework.  

The  EU  needs  to  strengthen  its  position  in  world  markets  for  environmental  technologies. 
Such  technologies  help  deliver  sustainable  growth  providing  eco-efficient  solutions  to 
environmental  problems  at  different  scales  and  protecting  our  cultural  heritage. 
Environmental  requirements  act  as  a  stimulus  for  innovation  and  can  provide  business 
opportunities.  European  Technology  Platforms  on  water  supply  and  sanitation  and  on 
sustainable  chemistry  confirm  the  need  for  EU  level  action  and  their  research  agendas  are 
taken into consideration in the activities below. Other Platforms (e.g. on Construction and on 
Forestry) partially deal with environmental technology issues and are taken into consideration 
as well. 

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A series of activities are listed below16 many of which are directly relevant to policy needs. 
However, additional support may be provided to new policy needs that emerge, for example 
relating to sustainability impact assessments of EU policies; the follow up of the post-Kyoto 
action  on  Climate  Change;  and  new  environmental  policies  such  as  in  maritime  policy, 
standards and regulations. 

Activities 

•  Climate change, pollution and risks 

–  Pressures  on  environment  and  climate:  Functioning  of  climate  and  the  earth  system; 
adaptation  and  mitigation  measures;  pollution  in  air,  soil  and  water;  changes  in 
atmospheric  composition  and  water cycle; interactions between climate, land surface  and 
the ocean; and impacts on biodiversity and ecosystems. 

–  Environment  and  health:  Interaction  of  environmental  stressors  with  human  health 
including identification of sources, links to indoor environment, and impact and emerging 
risk factors; integrated risk assessment methods for toxic substances including alternatives 
to animal testing; quantification and cost-benefit analysis of environmental health risks and 
indicators for prevention strategies. 

–  Natural  hazards:  Improve  prediction  and  integrated  hazards-  vulnerability  -  and  risks 
assessments  for  disasters  related  to  geological  hazards  (such  as  earthquakes,  volcanoes, 
tsunamis)  and  climate  (such  as  storms  and  floods);  develop  early  warning  systems  and 
improve prevention and mitigation strategies. 

•  Sustainable Management of Resources 

–  Conservation  and  sustainable  management  of  natural  and  man-made  resources: 
ecosystems;  water  resources  management;  waste  management  and  prevention;  protection 
and  management  of  biodiversity,  soil  protection,  seabed  and  coastal  areas  protection, 
approaches  against  desertification  and  land  degradation;  forest  management;  sustainable 
management  and  planning  of  urban  environment,  data  management  and  information 
services; assessment and foresight relating to natural processes. 

–  Evolution of marine environments: Impacts of human activities on the marine environment 
and its resources; pollution and eutrophication in regional seas and coastal areas; deep sea 
ecosystems; assessment of marine biodiversity trends, of ecosystem processes and of ocean 
circulation; seabed geology. 

•  Environmental Technologies 

–  Environmental 

technologies 

for  observation,  prevention,  mitigation,  adaptation, 
remediation  and  restoration  of  the  natural  and  man-made  environment:  related  to  water, 
climate,  air,  marine,  urban  and  rural  environment,  soil,  waste  treatment,  recycling,  clean 
production  processes,  chemicals  safety,  protection  of  cultural  heritage  and  of  the  built 
environment. 

16 

Complementary research relating to the production and use of biological resources is addressed under 
the “Food, Agriculture and Biotechnology” theme. 

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–  Technology assessment, verification and testing: Methods and tools for environmental risk 
and  lifecycle  assessment  of  processes,  technologies  and  products;  support  for  sustainable 
chemistry, water supply and sanitation Platforms17; scientific and technological aspects of 
a future European environmental technologies verification and testing programme. 

•  Earth observation and assessment tools 

–  Earth observation: Contribute to the development and integration of observation systems 
for  environmental  and  sustainability  issues  in  the  framework  of  GEOSS;  interoperability 
between  systems  and  optimisation  of  information  for  understanding,  modelling  and 
predicating environmental phenomena. 

and 

–  Forecasting  methods 

between 
economy/environment/society including market based instruments, externalities, thresholds 
and  developing  the  knowledge  base  and  methodologies  for  sustainability  impact 
assessment on key issues such as land use and marine issues; social and economic tensions 
related to climate change.  

tools:  modelling 

assessment 

links 

7. 

Transport (including Aeronautics) 

Objective 

Based  on  technological  advances,  develop  integrated,  “greener”  and  “smarter”  pan-
European  transport  systems  for  the  benefit  of  the  citizen  and  society,  respecting  the 
environment  and  natural  resources;  and  securing  and  further  developing  the  leading 
role attained by the European industries in the global market.  

Rationale 

Transport is one of Europe’s strengths - the air transport sector contributes to 2.6% of the EU 
GDP  (with  3.1  million  jobs)  and  the  surface  transport  field  generates  11%  of  the  EU  GDP 
(employing  some  16  million  persons).  However,  transport  is  responsible  for  25%  of  all  the 
EU emissions of CO2, hence the absolute need for a “greening” of the system to ensure more 
sustainable transport patterns and compatibility with growth rates, as developed in the White 
Paper on “European Transport Policy for 2010: time to decide”.18  

The  enlargement  (increasing  land  surface  by  25%  and  population  by  20%)  and  economic 
development of the EU present new challenges for transporting people and goods efficiently, 
cost-effectively  and  in  a  sustainable  manner.  Transport  also  has  direct  relevance  on  other 
major  policies  such  as  trade,  competition,  employment,  cohesion,  energy,  security  and  the 
internal  market.  Investment  in  RTD  in  EU  transport  industries  is  a  prerequisite  to  ensure 
technological  competitive  advantage  in  global  markets.19  Activities  at  European  level  will 
also stimulate the restructuring of the industry, including the integration of the supply chain 
and in particular SMEs. 

17 

18 
19 

The  research  agendas  of  these  European  Technology  Platforms  will  be  taken  into  account  in  the 
different activities. 
COM(2001) 370. 
The European aeronautics industry invests 14% of its turnover in research, the European car industry 
almost 5% of its turnover; and the EU shipbuilding industry competitive advantage relies exclusively on 
RTD. 

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The  research  agendas  developed  by  European  Technology  platforms20  support  the  need  to 
take  a  new  “transport  systems”  perspective  that  considers  the  interactions  of  vehicles, 
transport networks and the use of transport services, which can only be developed at European 
level. RTD costs in all these fields are rising substantially, and collaborative activity at EU-
level is essential to enable a “critical mass” of diverse RTD providers to address the scale and 
multi-disciplinary  challenges  in  a  cost-effective  way,  as  well  as  meeting  the  political, 
technological and socio-economic challenges on issues such as the “clean and safe vehicle” of 
the  future,  interoperability  and  intermodality  with  particular  reference  to  rail  transport, 
affordability, safety, capacity, security and environmental impacts in an enlarged Union. Also, 
developing technologies in support of the Galileo system and its applications will be essential 
in implementing European policies. 

As well as the strong industry relevance of the themes and activities set out below, the needs 
of  policy  makers  will  be  addressed  in  an  integrated  way  covering  economic,  social  and 
environmental aspects of transport policy. In addition, support will be provided to respond to 
existing  as  well  as  new  policy  needs,  for  example  relating  to  developments  in  maritime 
policy.  

Activities 

•  Aeronautics and air transport 

–  The greening of air transport: reduction of emissions and noise disturbance, incorporating 
work  on  engines  and  alternative  fuels,  structures  and  new  aircraft  designs,  airport 
operations and traffic management. 

–  Increasing time efficiency: improvement of the efficiency of operating schedules focusing 
on innovative air traffic management systems in line with the effective implementation of 
Single Sky policy which integrate air, ground and space components, including traffic flow 
and more aircraft autonomy. 

–  Ensuring customer satisfaction and safety: improvement of passenger comfort, innovative 
in-flight services and more efficient passenger handling; improvement of all safety aspects 
of air transport; wider choice of aircraft ranging from wide body to small size vehicles.  

–  Improving  cost  efficiency:  reduction  of  costs  associated  with  product  development, 
manufacturing and operating costs focusing on zero maintenance aircraft, increased use of 
automation and simulation. 

–  Protection  of  aircraft  and  passengers:  enhancement  of  protection  measures  for  the 
traveller,  crew, aircraft and air transport system such  as improved data and identification 
methods, protecting the aircraft against attack, auto recovery and improved security design 
of aircraft. 

20 

ACARE:  Advisory  Council  for  Aeronautics  Research  in  Europe.  Launched  in  2001,  it  is  the  first 
operational  example  of  a  Technology  Platform;  ERRAC:  European  Rail  Research  Advisory  Council; 
ERTRAC:  European  Road  Transport  Research  Advisory  Council;  WATERBORNE  Technology 
Platform. 

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–  Pioneering  the  air  transport  of  the  future:  addressing  the  longer  term  challenges  of 
aviation  with  more  radical,  environmentally  efficient  and  innovative  combinations  of 
technologies which would lead to significant steps forward in air transport. 

•  Surface transport (rail, road and waterborne) 

–  The  greening  of  surface  transport:  reduction  of  environmental  and  noise  pollution;; 
development  of  clean  and  efficient  engines,  including  hybrid  technology  and  the  use  of 
alternative fuels for transport applications; end of life strategies for vehicles and vessels. 

–  Encouraging  modal  shift  and  decongesting 

transport  corridors:  development  of 
innovative,  intermodal  and  interoperable  regional  and  national  transport  networks, 
infrastructures and systems in Europe; cost internalisation; information exchange between 
vehicle/vessel and transport infrastructure; optimisation of infrastructure capacity. 

–  Ensuring sustainable urban mobility: innovative organisation schemes, including clean and 
safe  vehicles  and  non-polluting  means  of  transport,  new  public  transportation  modes  and 
rationalisation of private transport, communication infrastructure, integrated town planning 
and transport. 

–  Improving safety and security: as inherent to the transport system, in transport operations 
for  drivers,  passengers,  crew,  cyclists  and  pedestrians,  in  the  design  of  vehicles,  vessels, 
and within the total transport system. 

–  Strengthening  competitiveness:  improvement  of  design  processes;  development  of 
advanced  power-train  and  vehicle  technologies;  innovative  and  cost-effective  production 
systems and infrastructure construction; integrative architectures. 

•  Support  to  the  European  global  satellite  navigation  system  (Galileo):  precise 
navigation  and  timing  services  for  use  in  a  range  of  sectors;  efficient  use  of  satellite 
navigation and support to the definition of second generation technologies. 

8. 

Socio-Economic Sciences and the Humanities 

Objective  

Generating  an  in-depth,  shared  understanding  of  complex  and  interrelated  socio-
economic  challenges  Europe  is  confronted  with,  such  as  growth,  employment  and 
life  and  global 
competitiveness,  social  cohesion  and  sustainability,  quality  of 
interdependence, in particular with the view of providing an improved knowledge base 
for policies in the fields concerned.  

Rationale 

Europe  has  a  strong  and  high  quality  research  base  in  socio-economic  sciences  and  the 
humanities fields. The diversity of approaches within the EU in the economic, social, political 
and cultural domains provides a highly fertile ground for research in these fields at EU-level. 
There  is  a  high  European  added  value  in  collaborative  research  addressing  European  socio-
economic issues in the areas mentioned. First, the issues and challenges concerned are of high 
priority  at  the  EU  level  and  are  addressed  by  EU  policies.  Second,  comparative  research 
across  several  or  all  EU  countries  offers  a  particularly  effective  tool  as  well  as  important 
learning opportunities across countries and regions.  

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Third, EU-level research has particular advantages in being able to develop Europe-wide data 
collection  and  to  employ  the  multiple  perspectives  needed  to  understand  complex  issues. 
Finally, the development of a genuinely European socio-economic knowledge base on these 
key  challenges  will  make  an  essential  contribution  to  promoting  their  shared  understanding 
across the European Union and, most significantly, on the part of the European citizens. 

The activities to be supported are listed below and are expected to contribute significantly to 
improve the formulation, implementation, impacts and assessments of policy in a wide range 
of  areas  such  as  economic,  social,  education  and  training,  enterprise,  international  trade, 
consumer,  external  relations,  justice  and  home  affairs  and  official  statistics  policies.  In 
addition,  opportunities  will  be  provided  to  address  emerging  socio-economic  challenges  as 
well as to undertake research on new or unforeseen policy needs. 

Activities  

•  Growth,  employment  and  competitiveness  in  a  knowledge  society:  developing  and 
integrating  research  on  the  issues  affecting  growth,  employment  and  competitiveness, 
ranging  from  innovation,  education  including  life-long  learning  and  the  role  of  scientific 
and other knowledge, to national institutional contexts.  

•  Combining economic, social and environmental objectives in a European perspective: 
by  addressing  the  two  key  and  highly  interrelated  issues  of  continuing  evolution  of 
European  socio-economic  models  and  economic  and  social  cohesion  in  an  enlarged  EU, 
taking into account the protection of the environment.  

•  Major trends in society and their implications: such as demographic change including 
ageing  and  migration;  lifestyles,  work,  families,  gender  issues,  health  and  quality  of  life; 
criminality;  the  role  of  business  in  society  and  population  diversity,  cultural  interactions 
and  issues  related  to  protection  of  fundamental  rights  and  the  fight  against  racism  and 
intolerance.  

•  Europe  in  the  world:  understanding  changing  interactions  and  interdependencies 
between world regions and their implications for the regions concerned, especially Europe; 
and addressing emerging threats and risks without undermining human rights, freedom and 
well-being.  

•  The citizen in the European Union: in the context of the future development of the EU, 
addressing  the  issues  of  achieving  a  sense  of  democratic  “ownership”  and  active 
participation  by  the  peoples  of  Europe;  effective  and  democratic  governance  including 
economic  governance;  and  building  a  shared  understanding  and  respect  for  Europe’s 
diversities  and  commonalities  in  terms  of  culture,  institutions,  history,  languages  and 
values.  

•  Socio-economic and scientific indicators: their use in policy and its implementation and 
monitoring, the improvement of existing indicators and the development of new ones for 
this purpose and for the evaluation of research programmes, including indicators based on 
official statistics. 

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•  Foresight activities on major science, technology and related socio-economic issues such 
as  the  future  demographic  trends  and  the  globalization  of  knowledge  and  evolution  of 
research  systems,  as  well  as  of  the  future  developments  in  and  across  major  research 
domains and scientific disciplines. 

9. 

Security and Space  

Objective 

To  develop  the  technologies  and  knowledge  for  building  capabilities  needed  to  ensure 
the  security  of  citizens  from  threats  such  as  terrorism,  and  crime,  while  respecting 
fundamental  human  rights;  to  ensure  optimal  and  concerted  use  of  available 
technologies  to  the  benefit  of  European  security,  and  to  stimulate  the  co-operation  of 
providers and users for security solutions. 

Supporting a European Space Programme focusing on applications such as GMES with 
benefits  for  citizens  and  for  the  competitiveness  of  the  European  space  industry.  This 
will  contribute  to  the  development  of  a  European  Space  Policy,  complementing  efforts 
by Member States and by other key players, including the European Space Agency.  

9.1 

Security 

Rationale 

Security in Europe is a precondition of prosperity and freedom. The EU Security Strategy: ‘A 
Secure Europe in better World’, adopted by the European Council, addresses the need for a 
comprehensive  security  strategy  encompassing  both  civil  and  defence-related  security 
measures.  

Security  related  research  is  an  important  building  block  in  supporting  the  Common  Foreign 
and Security Policy as well as for realising a high level of security within an EU-wide area of 
justice,  freedom  and  security21  as  underpinned  by  the  Hague  programme.  It  will  also 
contribute to developing technologies and capabilities in support of other EU policies in areas 
such as transport, civil protection, energy and environment. 

Existing security related research activities in Europe suffer from the fragmentation of efforts, 
the lack of critical mass of scale and scope and the lack of connections and interoperability. 
Europe  needs  to  improve  the  coherence  of  its  efforts  by  developing  efficient  institutional 
arrangements and by instigating the various national and international actors to co-operate and 
co-ordinate in order to avoid duplication and to explore synergies wherever possible. Security 
research at Community level will focus on activities of clear added value to the national level. 
As a consequence, security research at Community level will reinforce the competitiveness of 
the European security industry. 

The  activities  set  out  below  will  complement  and  integrate  the  technology-  and  systems-
oriented  research  relevant  to  security  which  is  carried  out  in  other  themes.  They  will  be 
mission-oriented,  developing  the  technologies  and  capabilities  as  required  by  the  specific 
security missions. They are by design flexible so as to accommodate as yet unknown future 

21 

Prevention, Preparedness, and response to terrorist attacks - COM(2004) 698, 700, 701, 702; Solidarity/ 
CBRN programme. 

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security threats and related policy needs that may arise, stimulating cross-fertilisation and the 
take-up of existing technologies for the civil security sector, European security research will 
also encourage the development of multi-purpose technologies in order to maximise the scope 
for their application.  

Activities 

•  Protection against terrorism and crime: delivering technology solutions for threat (e.g. 
CBRN)  awareness,  detection,  prevention,  identification,  protection,  neutralisation  and 
containment of effects of terrorist attacks and crime.  

•  Security  of  infrastructures  and  utilities:  analysing  and  securing  existing  and  future 
public and private critical/networked infrastructure (e.g. in transport, energy, ICT), systems 
and services (including financial and administrative services). 

•  Border  security:  focusing  on  technologies  and  capabilities  to  enhance  the  effectiveness 
and  efficiency  of  all  systems,  equipment,  tools  and  processes  required  for  improving  the 
security  of  Europe’s  land  and  coastal  borders,  including  border  control  and  surveillance 
issues. 

•  Restoring  security  in  case  of  crisis:  focusing  on  technologies  in  support  of  diverse 
emergency  management  operations  (such  as  civil  protection,  humanitarian  and  rescue 
tasks,  support  to  CFSP),  and  on  issues  such  as  inter-organisational  co-ordination  and 
communication, distributed architectures and human factors. 

The  above  four  areas  will  be  supported  by  the  following  themes  of  a  more  cross-cutting 
nature: 

•  Security Systems Integration and interoperability: focusing on technologies to enhance 
the  interoperability  of  systems,  equipment,  services  and  processes,  including  law 
enforcement  information  infrastructures,  as  well  as  on  the  reliability,  organisational 
aspects,  protection  of  confidentiality  and  integrity  of  information  and  traceability  of  all 
transactions and processing.  

•  Security  and  society:  mission  orientated  research  which  will  focus  onsocio-economic 
analyses,  scenario  building  and  activities  related  to:  crime,  the  citizen’s  perception  of 
security,  ethics,  protection  of  privacy  and  societal  foresight.  Research  will  also  address 
technologies that better safeguard privacy and liberties, and will address vulnerabilities and 
new threats, as well as the management and impact assessment of possible consequences.  

•  Security  Research  Co-ordination  and  structuring:  co-ordination  of  European  and 
international security research efforts and development of synergies between civil, security 
and defence research, improvement of legal conditions, and encouragement to the optimal 
use of existing infrastructures. 

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9.2 

Space 

Rationale 

The  EU  can  contribute  in  this  field  to  the  better  definition  of  common  objectives  based  on 
user requirements and policy objectives; to the coordination of activities, to avoid duplications 
and  maximise  interoperability;  and  to  the  definition  of  standards.  Public  authorities  and 
decision-makers  represent  important  potential  users  and  the  European  industry  will  also 
benefit from  a  well defined European Space policy implemented through a European Space 
Programme,  supported  in  part  by  the  proposed  research  and  technological  development 
actions. European level actions are also needed to support EU policy objectives, for example 
in the fields of agriculture, fisheries, environment, telecommunications, security, transport as 
well as ensuring that Europe is a respected partner in regional and international cooperation.  

In  the  last  40  years,  Europe  has  built  up  excellent  technological  competence.  Sustaining  a 
competitive industry (including manufacturers, service providers and operators) requires new 
research and technologies. Space applications bring important benefits to the citizens. 

The activities set out below aim at: the exploitation of space assets for the implementation of 
applications,  namely  GMES  (Global  Monitoring  for  Environment  and  Security)  and  their 
contribution  to  law  enforcement  in  EU  policies;  as  well  as  space  exploration,  allowing 
international  cooperation  opportunities  and  dramatic 
technological  breakthroughs;. 
exploitation and exploration of  space  supported  through enabling activities guaranteeing  the 
strategic role of the European Union. These activities will be complemented by other actions 
included in the Competitiveness and Innovation Framework Programme and in the Education 
and  Training  Programme.  The  public  policy  benefits  of  the  below  activities  will  also  be 
maximised,  included  additional  support  for  new  policy  needs  that  may  arise,  for  example: 
space based solutions in support of developing countries; and use of space-observation tools 
and methods to support developments in Community policies. 

Activities 

•  Space-based applications at the service of the European Society 

–  GMES: development of satellite-based monitoring systems and techniques relating to the 
management  of  the  environment  and  security  and  their  integration  with  ground-based, 
ship-borne  and  airborne  components;  support  to  the  use  and  delivery  of  GMES  data  and 
services.  

–  Innovative satellite communication services, seamlessly integrated in the global electronic 
communication networks, for citizens and enterprises in application sectors encompassing 
civil protection, e-government, telemedicine, tele-education and generic users. 

–  Development of technologies for reducing the vulnerability of space-based services and for 

contributing to the surveillance of space. 

•  Exploration of space 

–  Contribution to international space exploration initiatives. 

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•  RTD for strengthening space foundations 

–  Space transportation technology: research to increase the competitiveness of the European 

space transportation sector. 

–  Space sciences including life in space. 

II 

IDEAS 

Objective 

This  programme  will  enhance  the  dynamism,  creativity  and  excellence  of  European 
research  at  the  frontier  of  knowledge.  This  will  be  done  by  supporting  “investigator-
driven” research projects carried out across all fields by individual teams in competition 
at  the  European  level.  Projects  will  be  funded  on  the  basis  of  proposals  presented  by 
researchers on subjects of their choice and evaluated on the sole criterion of excellence 
as judged by peer review. 

Rationale  

Investigator-driven  “frontier”  research  is  a  key  driver  of  wealth  and  social  progress,  as  it 
opens  new  opportunities  for  scientific  and  technological  advance,  and  is  instrumental  in 
producing new knowledge leading to future applications and markets. 

Despite  many  achievements  and  a  high  level  of  performance  in  a  large  number  of  fields, 
Europe is not making  the  most  of  its research potential and resources, and urgently needs a 
greater capacity to generate knowledge. 

A Europe-wide competitive funding mechanism for frontier research executed by individual 
teams  is  a  key  component  of  the  European  Research  Area,  complementing  other  EU  and 
national  activities.  It  will  help  reinforce  the  dynamism  and  attractiveness  of  Europe  for  the 
best researchers from both European and third countries, and for industrial investment. 

Activities  

This action will respond to the most promising and productive areas of research and the best 
opportunities  for  scientific  and  technological  progress,  within  and  across  disciplines, 
including  engineering  and  social  sciences  and  the  humanities.  It  will  be  implemented 
independently  of  the  thematic  orientations  of  the  other  parts  of  the  Framework  Programme, 
and will pay attention to young researchers and new groups as well as established teams. 

The EU activities in frontier research will be implemented by a European Research Council 
(ERC), consisting of a scientific council, supported by a dedicated implementation structure. 

The scientific council will consist of representatives of the European scientific community at 
the  highest  level,  acting  in  their  personal  capacity,  independently  of  political  or  other 
interests.  Its  members  will  be  appointed  by  the  Commission  following  an  independent 
procedure for their identification. The scientific council will, inter alia, oversee decisions on 
the type of research to be funded and act as guarantor of the quality of the activity from the 
scientific perspective. Its tasks will cover, in particular, the development of the annual work 
programme,  the  establishment  of  the  peer  review  process,  as  well  as  the  monitoring  and 
quality control of the programme’s implementation from the scientific perspective.  

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The dedicated implementation structure will be responsible for all aspects of implementation 
and  programme  execution,  as  provided  for  in  the  annual  work  programme.  It  will,  in 
particular,  implement  the  peer  review  and  selection  process  according  to  the  principles 
established by the scientific council and will ensure the financial and scientific management 
of the grants. 

The  implementation  and  management  of  the  activity  will  be  reviewed  and  evaluated  at 
appropriate intervals to assess its achievements and to adjust and improve procedures on the 
basis of experience. 

The European Commission will act as the guarantor of the ERC’s full autonomy and integrity. 

III 

PEOPLE 

Objective 

Strengthening,  quantitatively  and  qualitatively,  the  human  potential  in  research  and 
technology  in  Europe,  by  stimulating  people  to  enter  into  the  researcher’s  profession, 
encouraging  European  researchers  to  stay  in  Europe,  and  attracting  to  Europe 
researchers  from  the  entire  world,  making  Europe  more  attractive  to  the  best 
researchers.  This  will  be  done  by  putting  into  place  a  coherent  set  of  “Marie  Curie” 
actions,  addressing  researchers  at  all  stages  of  their  careers,  from  initial  research 
training to life long learning and career development. 

Rationale  

Abundant  and  highly  trained  qualified  researchers  are  a  necessary  condition  to  advance 
science  and  to  underpin  innovation,  but  also  an  important  factor  to  attract  and  sustain 
investments  in  research  by  public  and  private  entities.  Against  the  background  of  growing 
competition  at  world  level,  the  development  of  an  open  European  labour  market  for 
researchers  and  the  diversification  of  skills  and  career  paths  of  researchers  are  crucial  to 
support a beneficial circulation of researchers and their knowledge, both within Europe and in 
a global setting.  

Mobility,  both  trans-national  and  intersectoral,  including  stimulating  industrial  participation 
and  the  opening  of  research  careers  and  academic  positions  at  European  scale,  is  a  key 
component of the European Research Area and indispensable to increase European capacities 
and performances in research.  

Activities  

•  Initial  training  of  researchers  to  improve  their  career  perspectives,  in  both  public  and 
private sectors, including through the broadening of their scientific and generic skills, and 
attracting more young researchers to scientific careers 

This  will  be  implemented  through  Marie  Curie  Networks  with  the  main  objective  to 
overcome  fragmentation  of  and  to  strengthen  at  European  level  the  initial  training  and 
career  development  of  researchers.  Members  of  the  trans-national  networks  shall  exploit 
their  complementary  competencies  through  integrated  training  programmes.  Support  will 
comprise recruitment of early stage researchers, organisation of training events also open 

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to  researchers  outside  the  network  and  senior  chairs  and/or  industry  positions  for 
knowledge transfer and supervision.  

foreseen 

•  Life-long  training  and  career  development  to  support  the  career  development  of 
experienced  researchers.  With  a  view  to  complementing  or  acquiring  new  skills  and 
competencies or to enhance inter/multidisciplinarity and/or inter-sectoral mobility, support 
is 
for  additional/complementary 
competences  and  skills,  for  researchers  to  resume  a  research  career  after  a  break  and  for 
(re)integrating researchers into a longer term research position in Europe, including in their 
country of origin, after a trans-national/international mobility experience. This action line 
will be implemented through both individual fellowships awarded directly at Community 
level and through the co-financing of regional, national or international programmes.  

researchers  with  particular  needs 

for 

•  Industry-academia  pathways  and  partnerships:  Support  to  longer  term  co-operation 
programmes between organisations from academia and industry, in particular SMEs, aims 
at  increasing  knowledge  sharing  through  joint  research  partnerships,  supported  by  the 
recruitment  of  experienced  researchers  to  the  partnership,  by  staff  secondments  between 
both sectors, and by the organisation of events.  

•  The  international  dimension,  to  increase  the  quality  of  European  research  by  attracting 
research 
talent  from  outside  Europe  and  fostering  mutually  beneficial  research 
collaboration  with  researchers  from  outside  Europe.  This  will  be  addressed  through 
international outgoing fellowships (with an in-built mandatory return phase); international 
incoming  fellowships;  partnerships  to  support  the  exchange  of  researchers.  Common 
initiatives between European organisations and organisations from countries neighbouring 
the  EU  and  countries  with  which  the  EU  has  a  Science  and  Technology  agreement  will 
also be supported. The activity will include measures to counter the risk of “brain drain” 
from  developing  countries  and  emerging  economies  and  measures  to  create  networks  of 
European researchers working abroad. These actions will be implemented in line with the 
international activities under the “Co-operation” and “Capacities” Programmes. 

•  Specific  actions  to  support  the  creation  of  a  genuine  European  labour  market  for 
researchers,  by  removing  obstacles  to  mobility  and  enhancing  the  career  perspectives  of 
researchers  in  Europe.  Furthermore,  awards  to  improve  the  public  awareness  of  Marie 
Curie actions and their objectives will be provided. 

IV 

CAPACITIES 

This  part  of  the  Framework  Programme  will  enhance  research  and  innovation  capacities 
throughout Europe and ensure their optimal use. This aim will be achieved through: 

–  Optimising the use and development of research infrastructures. 

–  Strengthening innovative capacities of SMEs and their ability to benefit from research. 

–  Supporting the development of regional research-driven clusters. 

–  Unlocking the research potential in the EU’s convergence and outermost regions. 

–  Bringing science and society closer together for the harmonious integration of science and 

technology in European society. 

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–  Horizontal actions and measures in support of international co-operation. 

The  activities  undertaken  in  this  part  of  the  Framework  Programme  will  also  support  the 
coherent  development  of  policies,  complementing  the  coordination  activities  under  the 
Cooperation programme, and contributing to Community  policies and initiatives that aim to 
improve the coherence and impact of Member States policies. This will include: 

–  Strengthening and improving the European science system, such as questions of scientific 

advice and expertise and contributing to “better regulation”. 

–  Monitoring and analysis of research related public policies and industrial strategies. 

–  Coordination  of  research  policies, 

including 

trans-national  cooperation 

initiatives 

undertaken at national or regional level on issues of common interest. 

RESEARCH INFRASTRUCTURES 

Objective 

Optimising  the  use  and  development  of  the  best  research  infrastructures  existing  in 
Europe,  and  helping  to  create  in  all  fields  of  science  and  technology  new  research 
infrastructures of pan-European interest needed by the European scientific community 
to remain at the forefront of the advancement of research, and able to help industry to 
strengthen its base of knowledge and its technological know how.  

Rationale  

Research  infrastructures  play  an  increasing  role  in  the  advancement  of  knowledge  and  its 
exploitation. For example, radiation sources, data banks in genomics and data banks in social 
science,  observatories  for  environmental  and  space  sciences,  systems  of  imaging  or  clean 
rooms for the study and development of new materials or nano-electronics, are at the core of 
research. They are expensive, need a broad range of expertise to be developed, and should be 
used and exploited by a large community of scientist and customer industries on a European 
scale. 

The  development  of  a  European  approach  with  regard  to  research  infrastructures,  including 
computing  and  communication  based  e-infrastructures,  and  the  carrying  out  of  activities  in 
this  area  at  Union  level,  can  make  a  significant  contribution  to  boosting  European  research 
potential and its exploitation.  

The EU can and should play a catalysing and leveraging role by helping to ensure wider and 
more  efficient  access  to,  and  use  of,  the  infrastructures  existing  in  the  different  Member 
States, by  stimulating  the development of these infrastructures in a coordinated  way  and by 
fostering  the  emergence  of  new  research  infrastructures  of  pan-European  interest  in  the 
medium to long term.  

Activities 

Activities  carried  out  in  this  field  will  be  executed  in  the  whole  field  of  science  and 
technology. They will be implemented in close cooperation with the activities taking place in 
the  thematic  areas  to  ensure  that  all  the  actions  undertaken  at  European  level  in  the  EU 

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framework respond to the needs for research infrastructures in their respective area including 
international cooperation.  

The activities will be the following:  

•  Support to existing research infrastructures 

–  trans-national  access  to  ensure  that  European  researchers  may  have  access  to  the  best 
research  infrastructures  to  conduct  their  research,  irrespective  of  the  location  of  the 
infrastructure 

–  integrating  activities  to  structure  better,  on  a  European  scale,  the  way  research 
infrastructures operate in a given field and promote their coherent use and development  

–  research  e-infrastructure  by  fostering  the  further  development  and  evolution  of  high-
capacity  and  high-performance  communication  and  grid  infrastructures  and  reinforcing 
European  high-end  computing  capabilities,  as  well  as  fostering  the  adoption  by  user 
communities,  enhancing  their  global  relevance  and  increasing  the  level  of  trust  and 
confidence, building on the achievements of GEANT and Grid infrastructures. 

•  Support to new research infrastructures 

–  construction  of  new  infrastructures  and  major  updates  of  existing  ones  to  promote  the 
creation of new research infrastructures, based on the work conducted by ESFRI22 notably, 
and  which  may  be  decided  on  the  basis  of  Article  171  of  the  Treaty  or  on  the  basis  of 
Specific Programme Decisions in accordance with Article 166 of the Treaty. 

–  design  studies,  through  a  bottom-up  approach  of  calls  for  proposals,  to  promote  the 
creation  of  new  research  infrastructures  by  funding  exploratory  awards  and  feasibility 
studies for new infrastructures. 

Infrastructures projects proposed for funding in this respect will be identified on the basis of a 
series of criteria including in particular:  

–  Added value of EU financial support 

–  Capacity  to  offer  a  service  to  users  from  the  scientific  (academic  and  industrial) 

community at European level 

–  Relevance at international level 

–  Technological feasibility 

–  Possibilities for European partnership and commitment of major stakeholders 

–  Construction and operating costs evaluated. 

22 

The European Strategy Forum on Research Infrastructures (ESFRI) was launched in April 2002. ESFRI 
brings  together  representatives  of  the  25  EU  Member  States,  appointed  by  Ministers  in  charge  of 
Research,  and  a  representative  of  the  European  Commission.  The  countries  associated  with  the 
Framework Programme for Research were invited to join in 2004. 

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As far as the construction of new infrastructures is concerned, an efficient coordination of the 
Community financial instruments, Framework Programme and Structural Funds in particular, 
will be ensured. 

RESEARCH FOR THE BENEFIT OF SMEs 

Objectives 

Strengthening the innovation capacity of European SMEs and their contribution to the 
development of new technology based products and markets by helping them outsource 
research, increase their research efforts, extend their networks, better exploit research 
results and acquire technological know how. 

Rationale 

SMEs  are  at  the  core  of  European  industry.  They  should  be  a  key  component  of  the 
innovation  system  and  in  the  chain  of  transformation  of  knowledge  into  new  products, 
processes  and  services.  Faced  with  an  increasing  competition  in  the  internal  market  and 
globally,  European  SMEs  need  to  increase  their  knowledge  and  research  intensity,  expand 
their  business  activities  on  larger  markets  and  internationalize  their  knowledge  networks. 
Most  Member  states  actions  relevant  to  SMEs  do  not  encourage  and  support  trans-national 
research  cooperation  and  technology  transfer.  Actions  at  EU  level  are  necessary  to 
complement and enhance the impact of actions undertaken at national and regional level. In 
addition  to  the  actions  listed  below,  the  participation  of  SMEs  will  be  encouraged  and 
facilitated, and their needs taken into account, across the Framework Programme. 

Activities 

Specific actions in support to SMEs are conceived to support SMEs or SME associations in 
need of outsourcing research to universities and research centres: mainly low to medium tech 
SMEs with little or no research capability. Research intensive SMEs who need to outsource 
research  to  complement  their  core  research  capability  may  also  participate.  Actions  will  be 
carried  out  in  the  entire  field  of  science  and  technology.  Financial  means  will  be  allocated 
through two schemes:  

–  Research  for  SMEs:  To  support  small  groups  of  innovative  SMEs  to  solve  common  or 

complementary technological problems 

–  Research  for  SME  associations:  To  support  SME  associations  and  SME  groupings  to 
develop  technical  solutions  to  problems  common  to  large  numbers  of  SMEs  in  specific 
industrial sectors or segments of the value chain. 

The  Competitiveness  and  Innovation  Programme  will  provide  support  to  networks  of 
intermediaries and national schemes for actions to encourage and facilitate the participation of 
SMEs in the Framework Programme. 

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REGIONS OF KNOWLEDGE  

Objectives  

Strengthening the research potential of European regions, in particular by encouraging 
and supporting the development, across Europe, of regional “research-driven clusters” 
associating universities, research centres, enterprises and regional authorities.  

Rationale  

Regions  are  increasingly  recognised  as  important  players  in  the  EU’s  research  and 
development  landscape.  Research  policy  and  activities  at  regional  level  often  rely  on  the 
development of “clusters” associating public and private actors. The Pilot Action on “Regions 
of Knowledge” demonstrated the dynamic of this evolution and the necessity to support and 
encourage the development of such structures. 

The actions undertaken in this area will enable European regions to strengthen their capacity 
for investing in RDT and carry out research activities, while maximising their potential for a 
successful involvement of their operators in European research projects.  

Activities  

The  new  Regions  of  Knowledge  initiative  will  involve  and  bring  together  regional  actors 
involved  in  research:  universities,  research  centres,  industry,  public  authorities  (regional 
councils  or  regional  development  agencies).  Projects  will  cover  joint  analysis  of  research 
agendas  of  regional  clusters  (in  coordination  with  other  activities  on  the  broader  issue  of 
regional  innovation  clusters)  and  the  elaboration  of  a  set  of  instruments  to  address  them  in 
specific  research  activities,  including  through  “mentoring”  of  regions  with  a  less  developed 
research profiles by highly developed ones. This will comprise measures aiming at improving 
research networking and access to sources of research funding as well as better integration of 
research actors and institutions in regional economies. These activities will be implemented in 
close  relationship  with  EU  regional  policy  and  the  Competitiveness  and  Innovation 
Programme and the Education and Training Programmes.  

In  the  context  of  the  specific  activity  of  “Regions  of  Knowledge”  synergies  will  be  sought 
with the EU’s regional policy, in particular with regard to convergence and outermost regions.  

RESEARCH POTENTIAL  

Objective 

Stimulating  the  realisation  of  the  full  research  potential  of  the  enlarged  Union  by 
unlocking  and  developing  the  research  potential  in  the  EU’s  convergence  regions  and 
outermost  regions23,  and  helping  to  strengthen  the  capacities  of  their  researchers  to 
successfully participate in research activities at EU level. 

23 

Convergence regions are those set out in Article 5 of the proposal for a Council Regulation laying down 
general  provisions  on  the  European  Regional  Development  Fund,  the  European  Social  Fund  and  the 
Cohesion Fund - COM(2004) 492. This includes “convergence” objective regions, regions eligible for 
funding from the Cohesion fund, and outermost regions. 

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Rationale  

Europe  does  not  fully  exploit  its  research  potential,  in  particular  in  less  advanced  regions 
remote  from  the  European  core  of  research  and  industrial  development.  In  order  to  help 
researchers  and  institutions  of  these  regions  to  contribute  to  the  overall  European  research 
effort,  while  taking advantage of the  knowledge and experience  existing  in  other regions of 
Europe,  this  action  aims  at  establishing  the  conditions  that  will  allow  them  to  exploit  their 
potential and will help to fully realise the European Research Area in the enlarged Union.  

Activities  

The action in this domain will comprise support to:  

•  Trans-national  two-way  secondments  of  research  staff  between  selected  organisations  in 
the  convergence  regions,  and  one  or  more  partner  organisations;  the  recruitment  by 
selected centres of incoming experienced researchers from other EU countries;  

•  The acquisition and development of research equipment and the development of a material 
environment enabling a full exploitation of the intellectual potential present in the selected 
centres in the convergence regions;  

•  The organisation of workshops and conferences to facilitate knowledge transfer; promotion 
activities as well as initiatives aiming at disseminating and transferring research results in 
other countries and on international markets. 

•  “Evaluation facilities” through which any research centre in the convergence regions can 
obtain an international independent expert evaluation of the level of their overall research 
quality and infrastructures. 

Strong synergies will be sought with the EU’s regional policy. Actions supported under this 
heading  will  identify  needs  and  opportunities  for  reinforcing  the  research  capacities  of 
emerging  and  existing  centres  of  excellence  in  convergence  regions  which  may  be  met  by 
Structural and Cohesion funds.  

SCIENCE IN SOCIETY  

Objective 

With  a  view  to  building  an  effective  and  democratic  European  Knowledge  society,  the 
aim is to stimulate the harmonious integration of scientific and technological endeavour, 
and  associated  research  policies  in  the  European  social  web,  by  encouraging  at 
European scale reflection and debate on science and technology, and their relation with 
society and culture.  

Rationale 

The  influence  of  science  and  technology  on  our  daily  lives  becomes  increasingly  profound. 
Products  of  the  social  activity  and  shaped  by  social  and  cultural  factors,  science  and 
technology nevertheless remain a remote domain far from the daily concerns of a large part of 
the  subject  of 
the  public  and  of  policy  decision  makers,  and  continues 
misunderstandings  and  unfounded  hopes  and  fears.  Contentious  issues  relating  to  emerging 

to  be 

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technologies should be addressed by society on the basis of well informed debate leading to 
sound choices and decisions.  

Activities  

The substantial and integrated initiative undertaken in this field will comprise support to:  

•  Strengthening  and  improvement  of  the  European  science  system,  including:  questions  of 
scientific  advice  and  expertise;  the  future  of  scientific  publications;  safeguards  for 
scientific domains open to misuse; and frauds, trust and “self regulation”.  

•  Broader  engagement  of  researchers  and  the  public  at  large,  including  organised  civil 
society, on science-related questions, to anticipate and clarify political and societal issues, 
including ethical issues. 

•  Reflection  and  debate  on  science  and  technology  and  their  place  in  society,  drawing  on 

history, sociology and philosophy of science and technology. 

•  Gender research, including the integration of the gender dimension in all areas of research 

and the role of women in research. 

•  Creation  of  an  environment  which  triggers  curiosity  for  science  in  young  people,  by 
reinforcing  science  education  at  all  levels  including  schools  and  promoting  interest  and 
participation in science among young people. 

•  Development of a policy on the role of universities and the engagement of universities in 

the necessary reforms to face the challenges of globalisation. 

•  Improved communication between the scientific world and the wider audience of policy-
makers,  the  media  and  the  general  public,  by  helping  scientists  better  communicate  their 
work and by supporting scientific information and media. 

These activities will take the form of, in particular, research projects, studies, networking and 
exchanges,  public  events  and  initiatives,  prizes,  surveys  and  data  collection.  In  many  cases 
they will imply international partnerships with organisations from third countries. 

ACTIVITIES OF INTERNATIONAL CO-OPERATION 

To  become  competitive  and  play  a  leading  role  at  world  level,  the  European  Community 
needs a strong and coherent international science and technology policy.  

This international policy has two interdependent objectives: 

– 

– 

To support European competitiveness through strategic partnerships with 
third countries in selected fields of science and by engaging the best third 
country scientists to work in and with Europe; 

To  address  specific  problems  that  third  countries  face  or  that  have  a 
global character, on the basis of mutual interest and mutual benefit. 

EN 

44 

   EN 

 
Cooperation with third countries in the Framework Programme will be targeted in particular 
at the following groups of countries: 

–  Candidate countries; 

–  Countries neighbouring the EU, Mediterranean partner countries, Western Balkans and the 

Newly Independent States; 

–  Developing countries, focusing on their particular needs; 

–  Emerging economies. 

The theme-oriented international cooperation actions are carried out under the “Cooperation” 
programme.  The  international  actions  in  the  area  of  human  potential  are  carried  under  the 
“People” programme. 

Under  the  “Capacities”  programme,  horizontal  support  actions  and  measures  with  a  focus 
other  than  a  specific  thematic  or  interdisciplinary  area  will  be  implemented.  Efforts  will  be 
undertaken to improve the coherence of national activities by supporting the co-ordination of 
national programmes on international scientific co-operation. The overall coordination of the 
international  cooperation  actions  under  the  different  programmes  of  the  Framework 
Programme will be ensured. 

EN 

45 

   EN 

 
NON NUCLEAR ACTIONS OF THE JOINT RESEARCH CENTRE 

Objective 

To provide customer driven scientific and technical support to the EU policy making 
process,  ensuring  support  to  the  implementation  and  monitoring  of  existing  policies 
and responding to new policy demands. 

Rationale 

The JRC’s independence of special interests, whether private or national, combined with its 
technical  expertise  enable  it  to  facilitate  communication  and  consensus  building  between 
stakeholders  (industry  associations,  environmental  action  groups,  Member  States’ 
competent authorities, other research centres etc.) and policy makers, especially at the EU 
level.  Through  scientific  and  technological  support  the  JRC  helps  to  make  the  EU  policy 
process more effective, transparent and based on sound science.  

The usefulness and credibility of the JRC’s support to EU policies is closely linked to the 
quality  of  its  scientific  expertise  and  its  integration  in  the  international  scientific 
community.  The  JRC  will  therefore  continue  investing  in  research  and  networking  with 
other centres of excellence in relevant fields. It will participate in indirect actions in all its 
aspects  with  emphasis  on  common  scientific  reference  systems,  networking,  training  and 
mobility,  research  infrastructure  and  participation  in  Technology  Platforms  and  co-
ordination instruments where it has the relevant expertise to produce added value.  

The  JRC  will  actively  pursue  promoting  the  integration  of  New  Member  States  and 
Candidate Countries in its activities to the level currently enjoyed by the EU15. 

Activities 

The  JRC’s  priorities  will  be  in  fields  which  are  strategically  important  for  the  Union  and 
where its input provides high added value. Scientific and technical support to EU policies 
will continue to be delivered in core areas such as sustainable development, climate change, 
food,  energy,  transport,  chemicals,  alternative  methods  to  animal  testing,  research  policy, 
information  technologies,  reference  methods  and  materials,  biotechnology,  risks,  hazards 
and socio-economic impacts. Growth will be in areas of key concern for the Union: 

•  Prosperity in a knowledge-intensive society 

–  To carry out and develop advanced econometric modelling and analysis techniques in the 
context of policy definition and monitoring such as the follow-up of the Lisbon agenda, 
the Internal Market and the Research and Education Policies.  

–  To  develop  models  to  support  a  new  balance  between  sustainability  objectives  and 

competitiveness in a responsible way.  

•  Solidarity and responsible management of resources 

–  To  become  a  recognised  S&T  reference  centre  on  sustainable  agriculture  focusing  on 
food quality, traceability and safety (including GM food and feed), spatial management 
and cross-compliance and to support the implementation of the CAP.  

EN 

46 

   EN 

 
–  To provide S&T support to the Common Fisheries Policy.  

–  To  enhance  the  provision  of  harmonised  European  geo-referenced  data  and  spatial 
information systems (support to INSPIRE) and to continue developing new approaches 
to global environmental and resources monitoring (support to GMES). 

–  To  support  the  implementation  of  the  EU  Action  Plan  on  Environment  and  Health 
including  providing  support  to  on-going  activities  to  establish  a  community  integrated 
Environment and Health information system. 

•  Security and freedom 

–  To  develop  activities  contributing  to  the  establishment  of  freedom,  justice  and  security 
especially  in  areas  related  to  fighting  terrorism,  organised  crime  and  fraud,  border 
security  and  prevention  of  major  risks,  in  relation  with  law  enforcement  agencies  and 
relevant EU services.  

–  To support the Community response to natural and technological disasters.  

•  Europe as world partner 

–  To strengthen support to EU external policies in specific areas such as external aspects of 

internal security, development cooperation and humanitarian aid. 

EN 

47 

   EN 

 
ANNEX II: INDICATIVE BREAKDOWN AMONG PROGRAMMES 

The indicative breakdown among programmes is as follows (in EUR million): 

Cooperation *,24 

 Health 

 Food, Agriculture and Biotechnology 

Information and Communication Technologies 

 Nanosciences, Nanotechnologies, Materials and new Production Technologies  

 Energy  

 Environment (including Climate Change)  

 Transport (including Aeronautics)  

 Socio-economic Sciences and the Humanities  

 Security and Space  

Ideas 

People 

Capacities 

Research Infrastructures * 

Research for the benefit of SMEs 

Regions of Knowledge 

Research Potential 

Science in Society 

Activities of International Co-operation 

44432

8317

2455

12670

4832

2931

2535

5940

792

3960

11862

7129

7486

3961

1901

158

554

554

358

24 

Including Joint Technology Initiatives (including financial plan, etc) and the part of the coordination 
and international cooperation activities to be funded within the themes. 

EN 

48 

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Non-nuclear actions of the Joint Research Centre 

TOTAL 

1817

72726

*  Including  a  grant  to  the  European  Investment  Bank  for  the  constitution  of  the  “Risk-Sharing  Finance 
Facility” referred to in Annex III. The Council decisions adopting the contributing specific programmes shall 
establish  (a)  their  maximum  contribution  to  the  grant,  and  (b)  the  modalities  under  which  the  Commission 
shall  decide  on  the  reallocation  of  incomes  generated  by  the  grant  and  of  any  of  its  leftovers  during  the 
lifetime of the seventh framework programme. 

EN 

49 

   EN 

 
 
 
ANNEX III 

FUNDING SCHEMES 

Indirect Actions 

The activities supported by the 7th Framework Programme will be funded through a range 
of “Funding schemes”. These schemes will be used, either alone or in combination, to fund 
different categories of actions implemented throughout the Framework Programme.  

The  decisions  for  specific  programmes,  work  programmes  and  calls  for  proposals  will 
mention, as and when appropriate:  

•  The type(s) of scheme(s) used to fund different categories of actions; 

•  The  categories  of  participants  (such  as  research  organisations,  universities,  industry, 

public authorities) which can benefit from it; 

•  The  types  of  activities  (research,  development,  demonstration,  training,  dissemination, 
transfer of knowledge and other related activities) which can be funded through each of 
them. 

Where  different  funding  schemes  can  be  used,  the  work  programmes  may  specify  the 
funding scheme to be used for the topic on which proposals are invited. 

The funding schemes are the following: 

a) 

To  support  actions  which  are  primarily  implemented  on  the  basis  of  calls  for 
proposals: 

1. Collaborative projects 

Support  to  research  projects  carried  out  by  consortia  with  participants  from 
different  countries,  aiming  at  developing  new  knowledge,  new  technology, 
products  or  common  resources  for  research.  The  size,  scope  and  internal 
organisation  of  projects  can  vary  from  field  to  field  and  from  topic  to  topic. 
Projects can range from small or medium-scale focused research actions to larger 
integrating projects which mobilise a significant volume of resources for achieving 
a defined objective. 

2. Networks of Excellence 

Support  to  joint  research  programmes  implemented  by  a  number  of  research 
organisations  integrating  their  activities  in  a  given  field,  carried  out  by  research 
teams in the framework of longer term co-operation. The implementation of these 
joint  programmes  will  require  a  formal  commitment  from  the  organisations 
integrating part of their resources and their activities.  

EN 

50 

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3. Coordination and support actions 

Support  to  activities  aimed  at  coordinating  or  supporting  research  activities  and 
policies  (networking,  exchanges,  trans-national  access  to  research  infrastructures, 
studies, conferences, etc). These actions may also be implemented by means other 
than calls for proposals. 

4. Individual projects  

Support  to  projects  carried  out  by  individual  research  teams.  This  scheme  will 
mainly be used to support investigator-driven “frontier” research projects funded in 
the framework of the European Research Council. 

5. Support for training and career development of researchers  

Support  for  training  and  career  development  of  researchers,  mainly  used  for  the 
implementation of the Marie Curie actions.  

6. Research for the benefit of specific groups (in particular SMEs) 

Support  to  research  projects  where  the  bulk  of  the  research  is  carried  out  by 
universities,  research  centres  or  other  legal  entities,  for  the  benefit  of  specific 
groups, in particular SMEs or associations of SMEs.  

b) 

To support actions implemented on the basis of decisions by the Council and the 
European Parliament25, based on a proposal from the Commission, the Community 
will provide financial support to multi-financed large-scale initiatives.  

•  A  financial  contribution  from  the  Community  to  the  joint  implementation  of 
well identified national research programmes, on the basis of Article 169 of the 
Treaty. This joint implementation will require the establishment or existence of 
a  dedicated  implementation  structure.  Community  financial  support  will  be 
provided  subject  to  the  definition  of  a  financing  plan  based  on  formal 
commitments from competent national authorities. 

•  A  financial  contribution  from  the  Community  to  the  implementation  of  Joint 
Technology Initiatives to realise objectives that cannot be achieved through the 
funding  schemes  identified  in  point  1  above.  Joint  Technology  Initiatives  will 
mobilise  a  combination  of  funding  of  different  nature  and  from  different 
sources,  private  and  public,  European  and  national.  This  funding  can  take 
different  forms  and  can  be  allocated  or  mobilised  though  a  range  of 
mechanisms:  support  from  the  Framework  Programme,  loans  from  the 
European Investment Bank, support to risk capital. Joint Technology Initiatives 
may be decided and implemented on the basis of Article 171 of the Treaty (this 
may  include  the  creation  of  joint  undertakings)  or  through  the  Specific 
Programme  Decisions.  Community  support  will  be  provided  subject  to  the 
definition  of  an  overall  blueprint  of  financial  engineering,  based  on  formal 
commitments from all parties concerned.  

25 

Or by the Council in consultation with the European Parliament  

EN 

51 

   EN 

 
                                                 
•  A  financial  contribution  from  the  Community  to  the  development  of  new 
infrastructures  of  European  interest.  This  contribution  may  be  decided  on  the 
basis of Article 171 of the Treaty or through the Specific Programme Decisions. 
The development of new infrastructures will mobilise a combination of funding 
of  different  nature  and  origin:  national  funding,  Framework  Programme, 
Structural  funds,  loans  from  the  European  Investment  Bank  and  others. 
Community  support  will  be  provided  subject  to  the  definition  of  an  overall 
financial plan based on a formal commitment from all parties concerned.  

The Community will implement the funding schemes in compliance with the provisions of 
the  regulation  adopted  pursuant  to  Article  167  of  the  Treaty,  the  relevant  State  Aid 
instruments,  in  particular  the  Community  framework  for  state  aid  to  research  and 
development, as well as international rules in this area. In compliance with this international 
framework,  it  will  be  necessary  to  be  able  to  adjust  the  scale  and  form  of  financial 
participation  on  a  case-by-case  basis,  in  particular  if  funding  from  other  public  sector 
sources is available, including other sources of Community financing such as the European 
Investment Bank (EIB).  

In  addition  to  direct  financial  support  to  participants,  the  Community  will  improve  their 
access to EIB loans through the “Risk-Sharing Finance Facility” by providing a grant to the 
Bank.  The  Community  grant  shall  be  used  by  the  Bank,  in  addition  to  its  own  funds,  to 
cover  the  provisioning  and  capital  allocation  for  its  loan  financing.  Subject  to  and  in 
accordance with modalities to be established by the regulation adopted pursuant article 167 
of the Treaty and the Council decisions adopting the specific programmes, this mechanism 
will  enable  broader  EIB  lending  to  European  RTD  actions  (such  as  joint  technology 
initiatives, large projects-including Eureka projects, and new research infrastructures).  

In  the  case  of  participants  to  an  indirect  action  established  in  a  region  lagging  in 
development (convergence regions and outermost regions26), complementary funding from 
the  Structural  Funds  will  be  mobilised  wherever  possible  and  appropriate.  In  the  case  of 
participation  of  entities  from  the  candidate  countries,  an  additional  contribution  from  the 
pre-accession  financial  instruments  could  be  granted  under  similar  conditions.  As  regards 
actions  in  the  “research  infrastructures”  part  of  the  “capacities”  programme  of  the  7th 
Framework Programme, the detailed funding arrangements for these will be defined with a 
view  to  ensuring  that  there  is  effective  complementarity  between  community  research 
funding and other EU and national instruments, notably the Structural Funds. 

Direct actions 

The Community will undertake activities implemented by the Joint Research Centre, which 
are referred to as direct actions. 

26 

Convergence regions are those set out in Article 5 of the proposal for a Council Regulation laying 
down  general  provisions  on  the  European  Regional  Development  Fund,  the  European  Social  Fund 
and  the  Cohesion  Fund  -  COM(2004)  492.  This  includes  “convergence”  objective  regions,  regions 
eligible for funding from the Cohesion fund, and outermost regions. 

EN 

52 

   EN 

 
                                                 
LEGISLATIVE FINANCIAL STATEMENT 

1. 

NAME OF THE PROPOSAL : 

Proposal  for  a  Decision  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council  concerning  the 
seventh  framework  programme  of  the  European  Community  for  research,  technological 
development  and  demonstration  activities  (2007  to  2013)  –  Building  the  Europe  of 
Knowledge 

2. 

ABM / ABB FRAMEWORK 

RESEARCH,  ENTREPRISE,  ENERGY  AND  TRANSPORT.  INFORMATION 
SOCIETY. DIRECT RESEARCH and FISHERIES 

3. 

BUDGET LINES 

3.1. 

Budget  lines  (operational  lines  and  related  technical  and  administrative 
assistance lines) including headings : 

Titles: 02, 06, 08, 09, 10 and 11 

3.2. 

Duration of the action and of the financial impact: 

2007-2013 subject to the approval of new financial perspectives framework 

3.3. 

Budgetary characteristics (add rows if necessary): 

Budget 
line 

06, 
09, 
and 

02, 
08, 
10 
11 

XX.01 

XX.01.05 

Type of expenditure 

New 

EFTA 
contribution 

Contributions 
from applicant 
countries 

Heading in 
financial 
perspective 

Non-
comp 

Comp/ 

Non-
comp  

Diff27/ 

Non-
diff28 

Non-
diff 

NO 

YES 

YES 

No [1a] 

NO 

NO 

NO 

No [ 1a…] 

NO 

YES 

YES 

No [ 1a…] 

27 
28 

Differentiated appropriations. 
Non-differentiated appropriations here after referred to as NDA. 

EN 

53 

   EN 

 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
4. 

SUMMARY OF RESOURCES 

4.1. 

Financial Resources 

4.1.1. 

Summary of commitment appropriations (CA) and payment appropriations (PA) 

EUR million (to 3 decimal places) CASH PRICES 

Section 
no. 

Expenditure type 

Operational expenditure29 

2007 

2008 

2009 

2010 

2011 

2012 

2013 

Total 

Commitment 
Appropriations (CA) 

Payment 
Appropriations (PA) 

8.1 

a  4.955,289 

6.450,321 

7.929,201 

9.553,215 

11.203,503 

12.811,940 

14.568,946 

67.472,416 

b 

Administrative expenditure within reference amount30 

Technical 
administrative 
assistance (NDA) 

& 

8.2.4 

c 

TTOOTTAALL  RREEFFEERREENNCCEE  AAMMOOUUNNTT  

Commitment 
Appropriations 

Payment 
Appropriations 

a+c 

b+c 

706,648   

720,781   

735,196   

749,900   

764,898   

780,196   

795,800   

5.253,418   

5.661,937 

7.171,102 

8.664,398 

10.303,11
5 

11.968,401 

13.592,136 

15.364,746 

72.725,834 

Administrative expenditure not included in reference amount31 

Human resources and 
associated 
expenditure (NDA) 

Administrative  costs, 
than  human 
other 
resources 
and 
associated  costs,  not 
included  in  reference 
amount (NDA) 

8.2.5 d 

8.2.6 e 

11,633  

11,866   

12,103   

12,345   

12,592   

12,844    

         13,101   

86,483    

0,807 

0,824 

0,840 

0,857 

0,874 

0,891 

  0,909 

6,002 

29 
30 
31 

Expenditure that does not fall under Chapter xx 01 of the Title xx concerned. 
Expenditure within article xx 01 05 of Title xx. 
Expenditure within chapter xx 01 other than articles xx 01 05. 

EN 

54 

   EN 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
   
  
  
  
  
   
  
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
         
         
         
         
         
          
 
 
 
                                                 
    Total indicative financial cost of intervention     

TOTAL  CA 
cost 
Resources 

of 

TOTAL  PA 
cost 
Resources 

of 

including 
Human 

including 
Human 

a+c
+d
+e 

b+c
+d
+e 

5.674,377    

7.183,791   

8.677,340   

10.316,31
6    

11.981,867    

13.605,87
1    

15.378,756    

72.818,319    

Co-financing details 

If  the  proposal  involves  co-financing  by  Member  States,  or  other  bodies  (please  specify 
which), an estimate of the level of this co-financing should be indicated in the table below 
(additional lines may be added if different bodies are foreseen for the provision of the co-
financing): 

EUR million (to 3 decimal places) 

n + 1 

n + 2 

n + 3 

n + 4 

Year 
n 

n  +  5 
and 
later 

Total 

Co-financing body 

…………………… 

TOTAL CA including co-
financing 

f 

a+c
+d+
e+f 

4.1.2.  Compatibility with Financial Programming 

⌧  Proposal  is  compatible  with  next  financial  programming  (Commission’s 
February  2004  Communication  on  the  financial  perspectives  2007-2013 
COM (2004) 101). 

Proposal  will  entail reprogramming of the relevant  heading in  the financial 

(cid:133) 
perspective. 

Proposal  may  require  application  of  the  provisions  of  the  Interinstitutional 

(cid:133) 
Agreement32 (i.e. flexibility instrument or revision of the financial perspective). 

4.1.3.  Financial impact on Revenue 

(cid:133) 

Proposal has no financial implications on revenue 

⌧ 

Proposal has financial impact – the effect on revenue is as follows: 

Certain Associated States may contribute to the funding of the framework programmes. 

32 

See points 19 and 24 of the Interinstitutional agreement. 

EN 

55 

   EN 

 
       
      
      
    
    
    
       
          
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
In accordance with Article 161 of the Financial Regulation, the Joint Research Centre may 
benefit  from  revenue  from  various  types  of  competitive  activities  and  from  other  services 
provided for outside bodies. 

In  accordance  with  Article  18  of  the  Financial  Regulation,  certain  revenue 
may be used to finance specific items. 

NB: All details and observations relating to the method of calculating the effect 
on revenue should be shown in a separate annex. 

Budget line 

Revenue 

EUR million (to one decimal place) 

Situation following action 

[Yea
r n] 

[n+1] [n+2] [n+3

] 

[n+4]  [n+5]

33

Prior to
action 
[Year 
n-1] 

a) Revenue in absolute terms 

b) Change in revenue 

 ∆ 

(Please  specify  each  revenue  budget  line  involved,  adding  the  appropriate 
number of rows to the table if there is an effect on more than one budget line.) 

4.2. 

Human  Resources  FTE  (including  officials,  temporary  and  external  staff)  – 
see detail under point 8.2.1. 

Annual requirements 

Year n 

n + 1 

n + 2 

n + 3 

n + 4 

n + 5 
and 
later 

Total 
number 
human resources 

of 

5. 

CHARACTERISTICS AND OBJECTIVES 

Details of the context of the proposal are required in the Explanatory Memorandum. 
This  section  of  the  Legislative  Financial  Statement  should  include  the  following 
specific complementary information: 

5.1. 

Need to be met in the short or long term 

The  7th  Framework  Programme  will  be  an  integral  part  of  the  EU  efforts  towards  the 
knowledge economy and society in Europe, together with other specific endeavours on 

33 

Additional columns should be added if necessary i.e. if the duration of the action exceeds 6 years. 

EN 

56 

   EN 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
education,  training  and  innovation.  The  elaboration  of  the  objectives,  as  illustrated  in 
the  Communication  COM  (2004)  353  of  16.6.2004  on  the  future  European  research 
policy  and  very  favourably  viewed  by  the  stakeholders  and  the  other  European 
institutions,  is  at  the  basis  of  the  Commission  proposal  for  the  7th  Framework 
Programme. 

The  7th  Framework  Programme  is  characterised  both  by  continuity  with  the  current  FP6 
(e.g. in the context of the collaborative research) and the introduction of novel elements at 
the level of content and instruments to address the arising needs at EU level (e.g. support to 
new infrastructures, co-ordination of national research programmes on a large scale, Joint 
Technology Initiatives, European Research Council).  

The  7th  Framework  Programme  addresses  the  main  components  of  European  research, 
namely  cooperative  research,  basic  research,  human  resources  and  research  capacities 
(including  infrastructures,  specific  SME  measures,  Science  in  Society  aspects,  support  to 
regions  etc).  The  main  instruments  to  be  used  will  be  the  known  ones,  with  important 
efforts already undertaken and more envisaged to simplify all procedures of the Framework 
Programme and make them friendlier for the proposers.  

These  elements  are  lucidly  presented  in  the  Explanatory  Memorandum  and  in  the 
Communication  “Building  the  ERA  of  Knowledge  for  Growth”  that  is  put  forward  at  the 
same moment as the Commission proposals for the 7th Framework Programme. 

5.2. 

Value-added of Community involvement  and coherence of the proposal with 
other financial instruments and possible synergy 

Intervention at EU level is justified in the field of R&D policy. There are a number of cases 
where it can be more effective to provide support for research at EU level than at national 
level. Some research activities are of such a scale that no single Member State can provide 
the  necessary  resources  and  expertise.  In  these  cases,  EU  projects  can  allow  research  to 
achieve  the  required  “critical  mass”,  while  lowering  commercial  risk  and  producing  a 
leverage  effect  on  private  investment.  EU-scale  actions  also  play  an  important  role  in 
transferring  skills  and  knowledge  across  frontiers.  This  helps  to  foster  excellence  in 
research and development through enhancing capability, quality and EU-wide competition, 
as  well  as  improving  human  capacity  in  S&T  through  training,  mobility  and  European 
career  development.  EU  support  can  also  contribute  to  a  better  integration  of  European 
R&D, by encouraging the coordination of national policies, by the EU-wide dissemination 
of results, and by funding research for pan-European policy challenges.  

An in-depth analysis is provided in the “Impact Assessment and Ex Ante Evaluation Report 
for the Commission proposals for the Council and European Parliament decisions on the 7th 
Framework Programme (EC and Euratom)”. This document represents a technical annex to 
the  legislative  proposal  in  the  form  of  a  staff  working  document.  A  whole  chapter  is 
dedicated to this question (see its Annex 1, chapter 3). The report also addresses alternative 
options  for  Community  intervention  and  the  impacts  likely  to  result  from  each  policy 
option. 

The 7th Framework Programme will involve new modes of support for research activities. 
These  will  be  complementary  to  the  support  to  be  provided  by  the  European  Investment 
Bank, the Structural Funds, national and regional schemes. More information is included in 

EN 

57 

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the Communication “Building the ERA of Knowledge for Growth” (see above) and in the 
Explanatory Memorandum.  

5.3. 

Objectives,  expected  results  and  related  indicators  of  the  proposal  in  the 
context of the ABM framework 

“Reinvigorating”  the  Lisbon  agenda  is  a  key  goal  of  the  EU  and  the  European 
Commission for the coming years. This implies, as a first priority, the full realisation of 
the  knowledge  society.  In  the  same  direction,  the  strategic  objectives  of  the  College, 
COM (2005) 12 final, have highlighted the importance of research and development as 
one of the key drivers of prosperity and growth. In particular this will mean the Union 
committing  to  invest  3%  of  GDP  in  research,  with  one  third  coming  from  the  public 
sector. This message is reinforced by the Communication on ‘A new start for the Lisbon 
Strategy’ COM (2005)24.  

The objectives set out here are therefore aimed precisely at supporting the aims of the 
Lisbon agenda through Community funded research activities. It has been demonstrated 
that such research plays a critically important role in promoting growth and prosperity, 
building the European knowledge base including research capacities and developing an 
integrated and strengthened European Research Area. 

Objectives are in the following areas:  

I. Cooperation 

Support  will  be  given  to  the  whole  range  of  research  activities  carried  out  in 
transnational  cooperation,  from  collaborative  projects  and  networks  to  the 
coordination  of  research  programmes.  International  cooperation  between  the  EU 
and third countries is an integral part of this action.  

Health: 

Improving 

the  health  of  European  citizens  and 

the 
1. 
competitiveness  of  European  health-related  industries  and  businesses,  while  addressing 
global  health  issues  including  emerging  epidemics.  Emphasis  will  be  put  on  translational 
research  (translation  of  basic  discoveries  in  clinical  applications),  the  development  and 
validation of new therapies, methods for health promotion and prevention, diagnostic tools 
and technologies, as well as sustainable and efficient healthcare systems.  

increasing 

Food, agriculture and biotechnology: Building a European Knowledge Based Bio-
2. 
Economy (includes all industries and economic sectors that produce, manage and otherwise 
exploit  biological  resources  and  related  services,  supply  or  consumer  industries,  such  as 
agriculture,  food,  fisheries,  forestry,  etc.)  by  bringing  together  science,  industry  and  other 
stakeholders,  to  exploit  new  and  emerging  research  opportunities  that  address  social  and 
economic challenges: the growing demand for safer healthier and higher quality  food and 
for  sustainable  use  and  production  of  renewable  bio-resources;  the  increasing  risk  of 
epizootic and zoonotic diseases and food related disorders; threats to the sustainability and 
security  of  agricultural  production  resulting  in  particular  from  climate  change;  and  the 
increasing  demand  for  high  quality  food,  taking  into  account  animal  welfare  and  rural 
contexts.  

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Information  and  communication  technologies:  To  enable  Europe  to  master  and 
3. 
shape the future developments of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) so 
that  the  demands  of  its  society  and  economy  are  met.  Activities  will  strengthen  Europe’s 
scientific and technology base in ICT, help drive and stimulate innovation through ICT use 
and  ensure  that  ICT  progress  is  rapidly  transformed  into  benefits  for  Europe’s  citizens, 
businesses, industry and governments. 

Nanosciences,  Nanotechnologies,  Materials  and  new  Production  Technologies: 
4. 
Improve  the  competitiveness  of  European  industry  and  ensure  its  transformation  from  a 
resource-intensive 
industry,  by  generating  breakthrough 
knowledge  for  new  applications  at  the  crossroads  between  different  technologies  and 
disciplines.  

to  a  knowledge-intensive 

5. 
Energy:    Transforming  the  current  fossil-fuel  based  energy  system  into  a  more 
sustainable one based on a diverse portfolio of energy sources and carriers combined with 
enhanced  energy  efficiency,  to  address  the  pressing  challenges  of  security  of  supply  and 
climate change, whilst increasing the competitiveness of Europe’s energy industries. 

6. 
Environment  (including  Climate  Change):  Sustainable  management  of  the 
environment  and  its  resources  through  advancing  our  knowledge  on  the  interactions 
between the biosphere, ecosystems and human activities, and developing new technologies, 
tools  and  services,  in  order  to  address  in  an  integrated  way  global  environmental  issues  . 
Emphasis will be put on prediction of climate, ecological, earth and ocean systems changes; 
on  tools  and  technologies  for  monitoring,  prevention  and  mitigation  of  environmental 
pressures  and  risks including on health, as well as for the conservation of the natural and 
man-made environment. 

7. 
Transport  (including  Aeronautics):  Based  on  technological  advances,  develop 
integrated,  “greener”  and  “smarter”  pan-European  transport  systems  for  the  benefit  of  the 
citizen  and  society,  respecting  the  environment  and  natural  resources;  and  securing  and 
further developing the leading role attained by the European industries in the global market.  

8. 
Socio-Economic  Sciences  and  the  Humanities:  Generating  an  in-depth,  shared 
understanding of complex and interrelated socio-economic challenges Europe is confronted 
with, such as growth, employment and competitiveness, social cohesion and sustainability, 
quality  of  life  and  global  interdependence,  in  particular  with  the  view  of  providing  an 
improved knowledge base for policies in the fields concerned.  

9. 

Security and Space :  

To develop the technologies and knowledge for building capabilities needed to ensure the 
security of citizens from threats such as terrorism, and  crime, while respecting fundamental 
human rights; to ensure optimal and concerted use of available technologies to the benefit 
of European security; and to stimulate the co-operation of providers and users for security 
solutions. 

Supporting  a  European  Space  Programme  focusing  on  applications  such  as  GMES  with 
benefits for citizens and for the competitiveness of the European space industry. This will 
contribute  to  the  development  of  a  European  Space  Policy,  complementing  efforts  by 
Member States and by other key players, including the European Space Agency.  

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II. 

Ideas 

This  programme  will  enhance  the  dynamism,  creativity  and  excellence  of  European 
research at the frontier of knowledge. This will be done by supporting “investigator-driven” 
research  projects  carried  out  across  all  fields  by  individual  teams  in  competition  at  the 
European level. Projects will be funded on the basis of proposals presented by researchers 
on  subjects  of  their  choice  and  evaluated  on  the  sole  criterion  of  excellence  as  judged  by 
peer review. 

III. 

People 

Strengthening,  quantitatively  and  qualitatively,  the  human  potential  in  research  and 
technology  in  Europe,  by  stimulating  people  to  enter  into  the  researcher’s  profession, 
encouraging  European  researchers  to  stay  in  Europe,  and  attracting  to  Europe  researchers 
from the entire world, making Europe more attractive to the best researchers. This will be 
done by putting into place a coherent set of “Marie Curie” actions, addressing researchers at 
all  stages  of  their  careers,  from  initial  research  training  to  life  long  learning  and  career 
development. 

IV.  Capacities  

Research  Infrastructures:  Optimising  the  use  and  development  of  the  best  research 
infrastructures  existing  in  Europe,  and  helping  to  create  in  all  fields  of  science  and 
technology new research infrastructures of pan-European interest needed by the European 
scientific community to remain at the forefront of the advancement of research, and able to 
help industry to strengthen its base of knowledge and its technological know how.  

Research  For  the  Benefit  of  SMEs:  Strengthening  the  innovation  capacity  of  European 
SMEs  and  their  contribution  to  the  development  of  new  technology  based  products  and 
markets  by  helping  them  outsource  research,  increase  their  research  efforts,  extend  their 
networks, better exploit research results and acquire technological know how. 

Regions  of  Knowledge:  Strengthening  the  research  potential  of  European  regions,  in 
particular  by  encouraging  and  supporting  the  development,  across  Europe,  of  regional 
“research-driven clusters” associating universities, research centres, enterprises and regional 
authorities.  

Research Potential: Stimulating the realisation of the full research potential of the enlarged 
Union by unlocking and developing the research potential in the EU’s convergence regions, 
and  helping  to  strengthen  the  capacities  of  their  researchers  to  successfully  participate  in 
research activities at EU level. 

Science  In  Society:  With  a  view  to  building  an  effective  and  democratic  European 
Knowledge  society,  the  aim  is  to  stimulate  the  harmonious  integration  of  scientific  and 
technological  endeavour,  and  associated  research  policies  in  the  European  social  web,  by 
encouraging  at  European scale reflection and debate on science  and technology, and their 
relation with society and culture.  

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Activities  of  international  co-operation:  Support  European  competitiveness  through 
strategic partnerships with third countries in selected fields of science and by engaging the 
best  third  country  scientists  to  work  in  and  with  Europe  as  well  as  to  address  specific 
prolems  that  third  countries  face  or  that  have  a  global  character,  on  the  basis  of  mutual 
interest and mutual benefit. 

V. Non Nuclear Actions of the Joint Research Centre:  

To  provide  customer  driven  scientific  and  technical  support  to  the  EU  policy  making 
process,  ensuring  support  to  the  implementation  and  monitoring  of  existing  policies  and 
responding to new policy demands. 

Performance  indicators:  will  be  developed  at  three  levels.  Quantitative  and  qualitative 
indicators  will  be  developed  to  show  the  path  or  direction  of  scientific  and  technical 
progress,  such  as  new  standards  and  tools,  scientific  techniques,  patent  applications  and 
licence agreements new products, process and services.  

Management  indicators  will  be  developed  to  monitor  performance  internally  and  support 
senior management decision making. These could include level of budget execution, time to 
contract and time to payment.  

Outcome (impact) indicators will be used to assess the overall effectiveness of the research 
against high-level objectives. These could include assessment at the aggregate Framework 
Programme Level (e.g. impact on the achievement of the Lisbon, Goeteborg, Barcelona and 
other  objectives)  and  assessment  at  the  SP  level  (e.g.  contribution  made  to  EU  S&T  and 
economic performance).  

More information on this point is included in the Annex of the “Impact Assessment and Ex 
Ante  Evaluation  Report  for  the  Commission  proposals  for  the  Council  and  European 
Parliament  decisions  on  the  7th  Framework  Programme  (EC  and  Euratom)”,  Chapter 6:  
Towards  an  effective,  user-friendly  management  and  outcome-oriented  new  the  7th 
Framework Programme, Section 3: New programme evaluation and monitoring system. 

5.4.  Method of Implementation (indicative) 

Show below the method(s)34 chosen for the implementation of the action. 

⌧  Centralised Management 

⌧     Directly by the Commission 

⌧    

Indirectly by delegation to: 

⌧       

Executive Agencies 

⌧   

Bodies set up by the Communities as referred to in art. 
185 of the Financial Regulation 

34 

If more than one method is indicated please provide additional details in the "Relevant comments" 
section of this point. 

EN 

61 

   EN 

 
                                                 
⌧        National  public-sector  bodies/bodies  with  public-
service  mission  (in  part  for    some  Marie  Curie 
individual fellowships) 

ٱ  Shared or decentralised management 

ٱ  With Member states 

ٱ  With Third countries 

ٱ  Joint management with international organisations (please specify) 

Relevant comments: 

As  a  general  principle  when  deciding  on  the  most  appropriate  management 
structures,  there  must  be  clear  lines  of  responsibility  within  the  Commission  and 
clean interfaces between the Commission and any separate management structures. 
In  addition,  where  the  link  between  the  detailed  follow-up  of  the  actual  projects 
funded and the development of S&T policy is clear, any shift of management away 
from  the  Commission  services  cannot  go  beyond  “upstream”  tasks  supporting  the 
submission  and  evaluation  of  proposals.  Where  this  link  between  the  individual 
project follow-up and the definition of scientific priorities is not direct or does not 
exist, management of the “downstream” tasks of making contracts and running the 
projects could be given to an executive agency. 

With this principle in mind, the following are proposed for the management of the 
various blocks of the Framework Programme: 

For actions deriving from Article 169 or Article 171 of the Treaty – notably for joint 
technological initiatives and new infrastructure actions - the management structures 
will  be  decided  on  a  case-by-case  basis  according  to  the  specific  characteristics  of 
the  action  concerned  and  will  be  created  by  the  decisions  establishing  the  actions 
and will involve management outside the Commission services.  

For  all  RTD  projects,  including  collaborative  research  projects,  the  hypothesis 
used  is  that  it  will  not  be  possible  to  manage  with  the  status  quo  (i.e.  full  internal 
direct management with limited use of outsourcing through commercial contracts). 
In this case,  for “upstream” implementation tasks an executive agency will be used. 
Tasks    would  include  the  reception  and  administrative  management  of  proposals 
submitted,  inviting  and  paying  expert  evaluators  (chosen  by  the  Commission), 
providing  logistical  support  to  proposal  evaluation  and  possible  further  tasks,  such 
as financial viability checking and provision of statistics. The continued possibility 
to  sub-contract  specific  tasks  to  private companies  (e.g.  for  the  development  of  IT 
tools) will not be ruled out.  

The  evaluation,  contracting  and  project  management  of  RTD  projects,  except  for 
those  identified  in  points  (3),  (4)  and  (5)  below,  would  be  carried  out  by  the 
Commission  services,  in  order  to  maintain  the  close  link  between  such  activities 
and policy formulation. 

(1) 

(2) 

EN 

62 

   EN 

 
 
(3) 

(4) 

(5) 

For the frontier research and the European Research Council (ERC), a scientific 
council  will  oversee  the  implementation  of  the  programme  from  the  scientific 
perspective; this will involve the preparation of the annual work programmes (which 
will  be  adopted  by  the  Commission),  the  establishment  of  the  peer  review  process 
and the quality control of project evaluation and selection. The administration of the 
programme  and  the  tasks  associated  with  the  implementation  of  the  individual 
projects will be assured by an executive agency . 

In the case of the mobility actions (other than the new scheme mentioned in point 
(5)  below  and  SME-specific  support  actions  ,  the  Commission  will  handle  the 
policy oversight and preparation of procedures and work programmes as well as the 
selection of projects and  the budgets allocated to them. Both the upstream and the 
purely downstream contract management will be provided by an executive agency, 
which will take over the tasks of preparing, signing and administrative follow-up of 
contracts  once  the  Commission  has  evaluated  the  proposals  and  decided  which 
projects  to  fund.  The  feedback  into  the  work  programme,  future  programmes  and 
other policy initiatives will be ensured by the Commission through monitoring and 
review at the  project  portfolio or sub-programme  level, whereas  the  agency  would 
deal with individual project-level management and payments. 

For  the  new  scheme  of  co-funding  of  national  mobility  programmes,  for  policy 
reasons the Commission will retain full responsibility for the evaluation and funding 
decisions at the highest level (i.e. the decisions on which national programmes to co-
fund  ).  The  detailed  implementation  of  the  individual  grant  schemes  under  this 
heading  will,  though,  be  passed  to  the  relevant  national  or  regional  public-sector 
bodies  or  private  bodies  with  a  public  service  mission  established  in  the  Member 
States, since there is no link from the individual grants to policy formulation. 

Flexibility  should  be  maintained  to  allow  the  possibility  of  adapting  these 
management arrangements depending on experience acquired during the first years 
of the 7th Framework Programme. 

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6. 

MONITORING AND EVALUATION 

6.1.  Monitoring system 

Monitoring  of  implementation  management  would  be  ensured  by  operational  senior 
management within the Commission on a continuous basis with annual check points and 
using a common set of management performance indicators. Adequate resource would 
be given to this process. The annual results of this exercise will be used to inform senior 
management and as an input to the multi-annual assessment exercise.  

The  requirements  and  systems  for  data  collection  regarding  proposal  evaluation  and 
contract  preparation  are  currently  under  review  given  the  needs  of  providing  a  robust 
and  simplified  data  set  while  imposing  minimum  burden  on  research  programme 
participants.  

6.2. 

Evaluation 

6.2.1.  Ex-ante evaluation 

In  line  with  the  Commission  requirements,  an  ex  ante  evaluation  of  the  7th 
Framework  Programme  legislative  proposals  has  been  undertaken.  This  evaluation 
is  incorporated  in  the  overall  Impact  Assessment  report  of  the  European 
Commission’s proposals for the European parliament and Council decisions on the 
7th Framework Programme (EC and EURATOM).  

The 7th Framework Programme Impact Assessment exercise was based upon inputs 
from  stakeholders,  internal  and  external  evaluation  and  other  studies,  and 
contributions from recognised European evaluation and impact assessment experts. 
The Impact Assessment exercise covered the period from April 2004 to April 2005. 
It  was  conducted  and  monitored  by  the  Commission  services  with  the  help  of  a 
number of external experts. 

6.2.2.  Measures  taken  following  an  intermediate/ex-post  evaluation  (lessons  learned 

from similar experiences in the past) 

A  Five  Year  Assessment  of  the  implementation  and  achievements  of  Community 
research over the five preceding years was carried out between June-December 2004 
by a panel of independent high level experts. The assessment was based on analysis 
of  an  extensive  database  of  evaluation  and  policy  reports  concerning  Community 
research,  8  separate  studies  and  analyses  prepared  specifically  as  inputs  to  the 
assessment  exercise;  interviews  with  and  presentations  by  Commission  staff;  and 
discussion by panel members within their own constituencies.  

The results of the Five Year Assessment were made available on 10 February 2005 
and  on  XX/XX/2005,  the  Commission  communicated  the  conclusions  of  the 
assessment,  accompanied  by  its  observations,  to  the  European  Parliament,  the 
Council,  the  European  Economic  and  Social  Committee  and  the  Committee  of  the 
Regions. 

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64 

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A synthesis of the key findings of the Five Year Assessment report and how these 
have been integrated into the proposal (in italics) are as follows:  

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

It was noted that the Framework Programmes have provided a major contribution to 
Europe’s  knowledge  base  and  the  restructuring  of  Europe’s  research  system  to  be 
more  innovative  and  that  the  Commission’s  proposal  to  substantially  increase  the 
European research budget in the future is a welcome step in the right direction. The 
proposal is for a substantial increase in funding of the Framework.  

It was recommended that a clearer vision or articulation of what EU research aims to 
achieve is needed to help set clear objectives, define precisely the Added Value for 
Europe,  reinforce  the  impetus  given  by  the  European  Research  Area  and  get  the 
necessary support from the public for these activities. The proposal is accompanied 
by  a  specific  Communication  to  describe  the  relationship  between  knowledge 
creation  and  growth  and  has  been  developed  in  parallel  with,  the  ex  ante  Impact 
Assessment which gives a clear and detailed statement on the expected benefits from 
the proposed research activities.  

It  was  recommended  that  the  industrial  orientation  and  participation  in  the 
to  help  strengthen  European 
Framework  Programme  must  be  enhanced 
competitiveness. Links to other EU policies are needed such as intellectual property 
rights (IPR), state aid rules and also encouragement of public-private collaboration 
such  as  through  joint  technology  initiatives.  The  proposal  reflects  the  need  for  a 
strengthened and simplified approach to Community research funding with detailed 
attention to the needs of the industrial sector, including different types of industrial 
participant  such  as  large  firms  and  SMEs.  The  promotion  of  joint  technology 
initiatives is one of the innovative features to promote industrial participation in the 
programme.  

It was recommended that excelling in science and developing human resources for 
research  will  be  crucial  for  further  development  of  the  knowledge-based  society. 
This will require the extension in scale and scope of human resources and mobility 
programmes.  The  proposal  reflects  this  need  through  the  enhanced  measures  for 
human resources development with the commitment for more flexibility and greater 
articulation between the public and private sectors. It is also proposed to create a 
European Research Council to promote riskier research and excellence in science.    

It  was  recommended  that  enhancing  citizens  trust  in  science,  technology  and 
innovation  and  better  understanding  of  the  legitimacy  of  research  policies  are 
necessary to tackle society’s concerns appropriately by science and research policy 
objectives. Impacts and actual results should be communicated to the public at large 
in  a  meaningful  manner.  The  proposal  reflects  these  needs  through  a  specific 
approach to Science in Society as one of the activities under ‘Capacities’.  

•  Simplifying  the  access  and  participation  to  the  Framework  Programme,  notably 
through  the  streamlining  of  its  administration,  is  essential  to  reinforce  its  positive 
role in the EU research landscape. This is not least true for the new Member States 
which face particular problems that are to be addressed. For reasons of continuity, it 
was  recommended  to  maintain  the  current  implementation  instruments.  Extensive 
efforts  are  ongoing  towards  a  major  simplification  of  Framework  Programme 
procedures,  the  proposed  results  of  which  are  incorporated  throughout  the 
proposal.     

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65 

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6.2.3.  Terms and frequency of future evaluation 

Not later than 2010, the Commission shall carry out with the assistance of external 
experts, an interim evaluation of the seventh framework programme and its specific 
programmes  on  the  quality  of  the  research  activities  under  way  and    progress 
towards the objectives set.     

A  coordinated  programme  of  studies  for:  horizontal  assessments  of  such  topics  as 
the  impact  of  research  on  issues  such  as  productivity,  competitiveness  and 
employment;  structuring  effects  of  the  Framework  Programme  on  the  ERA 
(fragmentation, excellence, coordination) through the formation and development of 
to 
commercial  and  knowledge  networks,  and 
infrastructures; and the impact of Community research on  strategic decision making 
in  companies  and  research  organisations  and  national,  European  and  regional 
authorities;  assessment  of  impact  and  achievements  at  portfolio,  programme  and 
higher  levels  against  the  strategic  objectives  and  indicators  that  are  set  within  a 
clearly defined programme logic. 

the  creation  and  support 

Two  years  following  the  completion  of  this  framework  programme,  the 
Commission shall have carried out an external evaluation by independent experts 
of its rationale, implementation and achievements. This would be supported by a 
coherent  set  of  independent  studies,  the  interim  evaluation  and  other  evaluation 
activities  carried  out  over  the  life-time  of  the  Framework  Programme,  as  listed 
above.    The  report  of  this  exercise  would  be  presented  to  all  interested 
stakeholders, including the Parliament and Council. Furthermore, this report could 
feed into future ex ante evaluation and impact assessments by the Commission. 

An  independent  ex  post  programme  evaluation  would  be  undertaken  2  years  after 
the end of the 6th Framework Programme.   

Evaluation  methods  to  include:  expert  panels;  sampled  analyses,  case  studies  and 
surveys;  longitudinal  studies;  studies  coordinated  with  Members  States;  where 
appropriate, cost-benefit analysis or follow-on macroeconomic impact analysis. 

7. 

ANTI-FRAUD MEASURES  

Measures  will  be  taken  to  ensure  that  the  same  anti-fraud  measures  taken  in  the  sixth 
framework programmes’ rules for participation and contracts will be brought forward and 
reinforced in the seventh framework programmes. These include measures such a financial 
collective  responsibility,  sanctions  against  overcharging,  measures  to  ensure  the  effective 
recovery of amounts due to the Commission, and administrative and legal measures taken to 
ensure  full  compliance  with  the  Financial  Regulation  and  its  provisions  regarding 
procedures for selecting and financing grants and services rendered to the Commission.  

EN 

66 

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8. 

DETAILS OF RESOURCES 

8.1. 

Objectives of the proposal in terms of their financial cost 

Commitment appropriations in EUR million (to 3 decimal places) Cash prices35 

(Headings of 
Objectives, actions 
and outputs should 
be provided) 

OPERATIONAL 
OBJECTIVE  No.1 
36 

COOPERATION 

OPERATIONAL 
OBJECTIVE No.2  1 

IDEAS 

OPERATIONAL 
OBJECTIVE No.31 

PEOPLE 

OPERATIONAL 
OBJECTIVE No.41 

CAPACITIES 

OPERATIONAL 
OBJECTIVE No51 

JRC 

Year     2007 

Year    2008 

Year 2009 

Year  2010 

Year 2011 

Year  2012  

Year 2013 

TOTAL 

No. 
outpu
ts 

Total cost 

No. 
out
put
s 

Total cost 

No. 
output
s 

Total cost 

No. 
output
s 

Total cost 

No. 
output
s 

Total cost 

No. 
output
s 

Total cost 

No. 
output
s 

Total cost 

No. 
output
s 

Total cost 

3.399,269 

4.340,582 

907,445 

1.158,732 

5.271,74
4 

1.407,30
8 

6.293,886 

7.332,531 

8.344,970 

9.449,190 

1.680,172 

1.957,442 

2.227,716 

2.522,699 

44.432,17
3 

11.861,51
4 

545,376 

696,400 

845,795 

1.009,786 

1.176,426 

1.338,861 

1.515,952 

7.128,596 

572,937 

731,365 

888,205 

1.060,391 

1.235,383 

1.405,950 

1.592,035 

7.486,265 

236,910 

244,023 

251,346 

258,878 

266,619 

274,640 

284,869 

1.817,286 

TOTAL COST 

5.661,937 

7.171,102 

8.664,39
8 

10.303,11
5 

11.968,40
1 

13.592,13
6 

15.364,74
6 

72.725,83
4 

35 

36 

The amounts represent (cash prices) the heading 1 a) of the Financial Perspectives related to “Establishing a European research area, …”excluding the part related to 
Innovation. 
Those amounts have not been included in the actual financial legislative statement.  
As described under Section 5.3. 

EN 

67 
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8.2. 

Administrative Expenditure 

8.2.1.  Number and type of human resources 

Types of 
post 

Officials 
or 
temporary 
staff37 
(XX 01 
01) 

Staff to be assigned to management of the action using existing and/or 
additional resources (number of posts/FTEs) 

Year 2007  Year 2008  Year 2009  Year 2010  Year 2011  Year 2012  Year 2013 

A*/AD 

40 

40 

40 

40 

40 

40 

40 

B*, 
C*/AST 

62 

62 

62 

62 

62 

62 

62 

Staff  financed38  by  art. 
XX 01 02 

Other  staff39 
financed  by 
art. XX 01 05 

A*/AD 

1.334 

1.334 

1.334 

1.334 

1.334 

1.334 

1.334 

B*, 
C*/AST  1.320 

1.320 

1.320 

1.320 

1.320 

1.320 

1.320 

TOTAL 

2.654 

2.654 

2.654 

2.654 

2.654 

2.654 

2.654 

37 
38 
39 

Cost of which is NOT covered by the reference amount. 
Cost of which is NOT covered by the reference amount. 
Cost of which is included within the reference amount. 

EN 

68 

 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
8.2.2.  Description of tasks deriving from the action 

Implementation of the Framework Programme 

8.2.3. 

Sources of human resources (statutory) 

(When more than one source is stated, please indicate the number of posts originating from each of the sources) 

⌧ 

Posts currently allocated to the management of the programme to be replaced or extended 

  ⌧ 

Posts pre-allocated within the APS/PDB exercise for year 2005 

⌧ 

Posts to be requested in the next APS/PDB procedure (14 posts for 2006) 

⌧ 

Posts to be redeployed using existing resources within the managing service (internal redeployment) 

(cid:133) 

Posts required for year n although not foreseen in the APS/PDB exercise of the year in question

EN 

69 

 
  
8.2.4.  Other Administrative expenditure included in reference amount (XX 01 05 – Expenditure on administrative management) 

EUR million (to 3 decimal places) Cash Prices 

Budget line 

(number and heading) 

Year  

2007 

Year 
2008 

Year  

2009 

Year 
2010 

Year 
2011 

Year 
2012  

Year 
2013 

TOTAL 

1 Technical and administrative 
assistance  (including  related 
staff costs) 

     Executive agencies40 

     Other 

technical 

and 

administrative assistance 

Statutory staff 

132,948   

135,607   

138,319   

141,086   

143,907   

146,785   

149,721   

988,374    

573,699   

585,173   

596,877   

608,814   

620,991   

633,411   

646,079   

4.265,044   

xx.01 05 01 

304,222   

310,306   

316,513   

322,843   

329,300   

335,886   

342,603   

2.261,673   

External staff 

xx.01 05 02 

108,425   

110,594   

112,806   

115,062   

117,363   

119,710   

122,105   

806,066    

Other administrative expenses 

xx.01 05 03 

161,052   

164,273   

167,558   

170,910   

174,328   

177,814   

181,371   

1.197,306   

   Total 
administrative assistance 

Technical 

and 

706,648   

720,781   

735,196   

749,900   

764,898   

780,196   

795,800   

5.253,418   

40 

Reference should be made to the specific legislative financial statement for the Executive Agency(ies) concerned. 

EN 

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8.2.5.  Financial cost of human resources and associated costs not included in the reference amount 

EUR million (to 3 decimal places) cash prices 

Type of human resources 

Year  

2007 

Year 
2008 

Year  

Year  

2009 

2010 

Year 
2011 

Year 
2012  

Year 
2013  TOTAL 

Officials  and  temporary  staff 
(08 0101 and ) 

Staff  financed  by  Art  XX  01 
02  (auxiliary,  END,  contract 
staff, etc.) 

Total cost of Human 
Resources and associated 
costs (NOT in reference 
amount) 

11,633   

11,866   

12,103   

12,345    

12,592   

12,844   

13,101   

86,483   

11,633   

11,866   

12,103   

12,345    

12,592   

12,844   

13,101   

86,483   

Calculation– Administrative expenditures  

Have been calculated taking into account the following hypothesis: 

 - the number of official  staff on the ex part A of the budget remains at 2006 level  

- expenditures increased by the 2% each year according to the inflation foreseen such as indicated in Fiche 1 REV (working document 

of commission services related to the financial perspectives), 

-  the assumption of 108 000 € for each official staff, and 70.000 € for the external staff 

- the amounts related to agencies do not include officials that will be transferred from the staff of the Directorates General 

Calculation– Staff financed under art. XX 01 02 

Reference should be made to Point 8.2.1, if applicable 

EN 

71 

 
  
          
         
         
         
         
         
         
          
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
          
         
         
         
         
         
         
          
 
8.2.6 Other administrative expenditure not included in reference amount 

EUR million (to 3 decimal places) cash prices 

Year 
2007 

Year 
2008 

Year 
2009 

Year 
2010 

Year 
2011 

Year  

2012 
and 
2013 

TOTAL 

     XX 01 02 11 01 – Missions 

0,320 

0,326 

0,333 

0,339 

0,346 

0.713 

2,376 

     XX 01 02 11 02 – Meetings & Conferences 

0,010 

0,010 

0,011 

0,011 

0,011 

0.023 

0,076 

     XX 01 02 11 03 – Committees41  

0,478 

0,487 

0,497 

0,507 

0,517 

1.065 

3,550 

     XX 01 02 11 04 – Studies & consultations 

     XX 01 02 11 05 - Information systems 

 2 

  Total  Other  Management 
Expenditure (XX 01 02 11) 

3 

Other 

expenditure 

administrative 
including reference to budget line) 

nature 

of 

an 
(specify 

Total Administrative expenditure, other 
than human resources and associated 
costs (NOT included in reference 
amount) 

0,807 

0,824 

0,840 

0,857 

0,874 

1.801 

6,002 

41 

EURAB committee. 

EN 

72 

 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
Calculation - Other administrative expenditure not included in reference amount 

These figures are estimated on the basis of the 2006 DG RTD requests increased of the 2% for the yearly foreseen inflation. (Fiche 1 
REV) 

The  needs  for  human  and  administrative  resources  shall  be  covered  within  the  allocation  granted  to  the  managing  DG  in  the 
framework of the annual allocation procedure. 

EN 

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EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM 

1. 

Context of the proposal 

The  political  context  and  objectives  for  this  proposal  are  set  out  in  the  communication 
“Building the ERA of knowledge for growth”42 presented by the Commission at the same 
time.  

Knowledge is at the core of the Lisbon agenda and underpins all its elements. Research and 
technology are, together with education and innovation, the components of the “Triangle of 
knowledge”. 

To  become  the  “most  dynamic  and  competitive  knowledge-based  economy  in  the  world” 
while maintaining the “European Model”, Europe must increase its research effort to 3% of 
EU  GDP  and  better  exploit  its  capacities  in  this  field,  transforming  scientific  results  into 
new products, processes and services.  

Alongside the Member states and in close cooperation with them, the EU must mobilise its 
legal  and  financial  tools  towards  this  goal,  starting  with  the  research  Framework 
Programme. 

2. 

Prior consultation  

In  the  preparation  of  the  current  proposals,  the  Commission  has  taken  into  account  the 
views expressed by the other EU institutions, in particular the European Parliament and the 
Member  States,  as  well  as  by  many  stakeholders  in  a  broad  consultation,  including  the 
scientific community and industry.  

This  proposal  also  relies  on  an  in-depth  impact  assessment.  This  impact  assessment  was 
based  upon  inputs  from  stakeholders,  internal  and  external  evaluations  and  other  studies, 
and contributions from recognised European evaluation and impact assessment experts.  

The  assessment  found  that  Europe  faces  many  economic,  social  and  environmental 
challenges  that  science  and  technology  help  address;  that  the  European  scientific  and 
technological system has flaws, however; and that the EU successfully supported research 
through past Framework Programmes. 

3. 

Legal aspects 

The proposal for the Euratom Framework Programme, which covers the period 2007-2011, 
is  based  on  article  7  of  the  Euratom  Treaty.  In  accordance  with  this  Article,  second 
paragraph, the research programmes are drawn up for a period of not more than five years. 
Hence,  the  Commission’s  current  proposal  for  the  Euratom  framework  programme  is  not 
for the same duration as for the EC framework programme.  

The  Commission  proposes  that,  unless  extenuating  circumstances  arise,  this  framework 
programme  can  be  renewed  for  the  period  2012-2013,  in  accordance  with  the  foreseen 
legislative procedure. 

42 

COM(2005) 118. 

EN 

74 

   EN 

 
                                                 
In order to strengthen excellence and raise the average level of research in Europe, the basic 
principle  is  to  stimulate,  organise  and  exploit  all  forms  of  cooperation  in  research,  from 
collaboration  in  joint  projects  and  networks  to  the  coordination  of  national  research 
programmes, competition at the European level as well as the joint implementation of large 
technology  initiatives  and  the  common  development  of  infrastructures  of  European 
dimension and interest.  

The  actions  implemented  in  the  Euratom  Framework  Programme  are  complementary  to 
those undertaken by the Member states in the field of nuclear energy.  

As a matter of principle, all the provisions of the EC Framework Programme (for instance 
as regards funding schemes) are applicable in the Euratom Framework Programme, unless 
they  depend  on  articles  in  the  EC  Treaty  for  which  there  is  no  equivalent  in  the  Euratom 
Treaty. In addition, where appropriate, specific provisions of the Euratom Treaty will apply.  

4. 

Budgetary implication  

The  “legislative  financial  statement”  attached  to  this  Decision  sets  out  the  budgetary 
implications  and  the  human  and  administrative  resources,  covering  also  the  period 
2012-2013. 

5. 

Simplification 

A  key  feature  of  the  7th  Framework  Programme  is  a  significant  simplification  of  its 
operation  compared  with  its  predecessors.  The  measures  envisaged  in  this  respect  are 
described in the Working Document on implementation accompanying the proposal. They 
will  cover  the  entire  funding  cycle,  including  the  simplification  of  funding  schemes, 
administrative  and  financial  rules  and  procedures,  as  well  as  the  readability  and  user-
friendliness  of  documents.  The  Commission  intends  to  use  the  executive  agency  set  up 
under  the  7th  EC  Framework  Programme  for  the  execution  of  some  tasks  currently 
performed within the Commission, but identified as suitable for externalisation. 

6. 

Content 

The EURATOM Framework Programme is organised in two specific programmes.  

One covers two areas: 

–  Fusion  energy  research: 

to  develop 

the 

technology  for  a  safe,  sustainable, 

environmentally responsible and economically viable energy source. 

–  Nuclear fission and radiation protection: to promote the safe use and exploitation of 

nuclear fission and other uses of radiation in industry and medicine. 

The other covers the activities of the Joint Research Centre in the field of nuclear energy. In 
this  area,  the  objective  is  to  provide  scientific  and  technical  support  to  the  policy  making 
process  in  the  nuclear  field,  while  ensuring  stability  of  support  to  the  implementation  of 
existing policies and adapting to changing policy demands. 

EN 

75 

   EN 

 
2005/0044 (CNS) 

Proposal for a 

COUNCIL DECISION 

concerning the seventh framework programme of the European Atomic Energy 
Community (Euratom) for nuclear research and training activities (2007 to 2011) 

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, 

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Atomic Energy Community, and in 
particular Article 7 thereof, 

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission43, 

Having regard to the opinion of the European Parliament44, 

Having regard to the opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee45, 

Whereas: 

(1) 

(2) 

(3) 

(5) 

Joint national and European efforts in the area of research and training are essential 
to promote and ensure economic growth and citizen’s wellbeing in Europe.  

The seventh framework programme complements other EU actions in the area of the 
research  policy  that  are  necessary  for  the  implementation  of  the  Lisbon  strategy, 
alongside in particular those on education, training, competitiveness and innovation, 
industry, employment, and environment. 

This framework programme builds on the achievements of its predecessor towards 
the  creation  of  the  European  Research  Area,  and  carries  them  further  towards  the 
development of the knowledge economy and society in Europe. 

The  Commission  Green  Paper  ‘Towards  a  European  strategy  for  energy  supply’ 
highlights  the  contribution  of  nuclear  power  in  reducing  emissions  of  greenhouse 
gases and in reducing Europe’s dependence on imported energy.  

(6)  With  reference  to  the  Council  Decision  of  26  November  2004  amending  the 
directives of negotiations on ITER46, the realisation of ITER in Europe, in a broader 
approach  to  fusion  energy,  will  be  the  central  feature  of  the  activities  on  fusion 
research carried out under the seventh framework programme 

43 
44 
45 
46 

OJ C , , p. . 
OJ C , , p. . 
OJ C , , p. . 
Not published in the OJ. 

EN 

76 

   EN 

 
                                                 
(7) 

(8) 

(9) 

Implementation of the seventh framework programme may give rise to the setting up 
of joint undertakings within the meaning of Title II, Chapter 5 of the Treaty.  

Research  activities  supported  by  this  Framework  Programme  should  respect 
fundamental  ethical  principles,  including  those  reflected  in  the  Charter  of 
Fundamental Rights of the European Union. The opinions of the European Group on 
Ethics in Science and New Technologies are and will be taken into account. 

This act establishes a financial framework for the entire duration of the programme 
which is to be the principal point of reference for the budgetary authority, within the 
meaning  of  point  ….  of  the  Interinstitutional  Agreement  of  ….  between  the 
European Parliament, the Council and the Commission on budgetary discipline and 
improvement of the budgetary procedure. 

(10)  On … 2005 the Commission submitted the conclusions of the external assessment of 
the  implementation  and  results  of  the  Community  activities  carried  out  in  the  five 
years preceding that assessment, accompanied by its observations. 

(11) 

It  is  important  to  ensure  sound  financial  management  of  the  seventh  framework 
programme  and  its  implementation  in  the  most  effective  and  user-friendly  manner 
possible, as well as ease of access for all participants. 

(12)  Under  the  seventh  Framework  Programme  due  regard  will  be  paid  to  the  role  of 
women and science and research with a view to further enhancing their active role in 
research. 

(13)  The Joint Research Center should contribute to the attainment of the objectives set 
out above by carrying out direct activities and by providing customer-driven support 
for the implementation of EU policies. 

(14)  The international and global dimension in European research activities is important 
in the interest of obtaining mutual benefits. The seventh Framework Programme is 
open to the participation of countries having concluded the necessary agreements to 
this effect, and is also open, on the project level and on the basis of mutual benefit, 
to  the  participation  of  entities  from  thirds  countries  and  of  international 
organisations for scientific cooperation. 

(15)  The  seventh  Framework  Programme  should  contribute  to  enlargement  by  bringing 
scientific  and 
the 
implementation  of  Community  acquis  and  for  their  integration  into  the  European 
Research Area. 

the  candidate  countries 

technological  support 

for 

to 

(16)  Appropriate  measures  should  also  be  taken  to  prevent  irregularities  and  fraud  and 
the  necessary  steps  should  be  taken  to  recover  funds  lost,  wrongly  paid  or 
incorrectly used in accordance with Council Regulations (EC, Euratom) No 2988/95 
of  18  December  1995  on  the  protection  of  the  European  Communities  financial 
interests47, (EC, Euratom) No 2185/96 of 11 November 1996 concerning on-the-spot 
checks  and  inspections  carried  out  by  the  Commission  in  order  to  protect  the 

47 

OJ L 312, 23.12.1995, p. 1. 

EN 

77 

   EN 

 
                                                 
European  Communities’  financial  interests  against  fraud  and  other  irregularities48 
and Regulation (EC) No 1073/1999 of the European Parliament and of the Council 
concerning investigations conducted by the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF)49. 

(17)  The Scientific and Technical Committee has been consulted by the Commission and 

has delivered its opinion. 

HAS DECIDED AS FOLLOWS:  

Article 1 

Establishment of the research and training framework programme 

A  multiannual  framework  programme  for  nuclear  research  and  training  activities, 
hereinafter referred to as the “seventh framework programme” is hereby established for the 
period from 1 January, 2007 to 31 December , 2011.  

Article 2 

Objectives 

1. 

2. 

The seventh Framework programme shall pursue the general objectives set out in 
Article 1 and Article 2(a) of the Treaty, while contributing towards the creation of 
a knowledge-based society, building on a European Research Area. 

The  seventh  framework  programme  shall  comprise  Community  research, 
technological  development,  international  cooperation,  dissemination  of  technical 
information  and  exploitation  activities  as  well  as  training,  to  be  set  out  in  two 
specific programmes: 

The first programme shall cover the following: 

(a) 

(b) 

Fusion  energy  research,  with  the  objective  of  developing  the 
technology for a safe, sustainable, environmentally responsible and 
economically viable energy source; 

Nuclear  fission  and  radiation  protection  with  the  objective  of 
promoting the safe use and exploitation of nuclear fission and other 
uses of radiation in industry and medicine. 

The  second  programme  shall  cover  the  activities  of  the  Joint  Research  Centre  in 
the field of nuclear energy. 

3. 

The broad lines of the programmes are described in Annex I. 

48 
49 

OJ L 292, 15.11.1996, p. 2. 
OJ L 136, 31.5.1999, p. 1. 

EN 

78 

   EN 

 
                                                 
Article 3  

Maximum overall amount and shares assigned to each programme 

1. 

The overall amount for the implementation of the seventh framework programme 
for  the  period  2007  to  2011  shall  be  EUR  3092  million.  That  amount  shall  be 
distributed as follows (in EUR million): 

(a) 

Fusion energy research 

(b) 

Nuclear Fission and radiation protection 

(c) 

Nuclear Activities of the Joint Research Centre 

2159 

394 

539 

2. 

The  detailed  rules  for  Community  financial  participation  in  this  Framework 
programme are set out in Annex II. 

Article 4 

Protection of the Communities’ financial interests 

For  the  Community  actions  financed  under  this  Decision,  Regulation  (EC,  Euratom)  No 
2988/95  and  Regulation  (EC,  Euratom)  No  2185/96  shall  apply  to  any  infringement  of  a 
provision of Community law, including infringement of a contractual obligation stipulated 
on the basis of the programme, resulting from an act or omission by an economic operator, 
which  has,  or  would  have,  the  effect  of  prejudicing  the  general  budget  of  the  European 
Communities or budgets managed by them, by an unjustified item of expenditure. 

All  the  research  activities  carried  out  under  the  seventh  Framework  Programme  shall  be 
carried out in compliance with fundamental ethical principles. 

Article 5 

Article 6 

Monitoring, assessment and review 

1. 

2. 

Not later than 2010, the Commission shall carry out, with the assistance of external 
experts,  an  interim  evaluation  of  this  framework  programme  and  its  specific 
programmes on the quality of the research activities under way, progress towards 
the objectives set and the scientific and technical results achieved.  

Following  the  completion  of  this  framework  programme,  the  Commission  shall 
carry  out  an  external  evaluation  by  independent  experts  of  its  rationale, 
implementation and achievements.   
The  Commission  shall  communicate  the  conclusions  thereof,  accompanied  by  its 
observations, to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and 
Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions. 

EN 

79 

   EN 

 
Done at Brussels,  

For the Council 
The President 

EN 

80 

   EN 

 
 
 
 
 
ANNEX I 

SCIENTIFIC AND TECHNOLOGICAL OBJECTIVES, THEMES AND ACTIVITIES 

INTRODUCTION  

The 7th EURATOM Research Framework Programme is organised in two parts corresponding 
to  the  “’indirect”  actions  on  fusion  energy  research  and  nuclear  fission  and  radiation 
protection, and the “direct” research activities of the Joint Research Centre. 

FUSION ENERGY RESEARCH 

Objective 

Developing the knowledge base for, and realising ITER as the major step towards, the 
creation  of  prototype  reactors  for  power  stations  which  are  safe,  sustainable, 
environmentally responsible, and economically viable. 

Rationale 

There are serious shortcomings in Europe’s energy supply with respect to near, medium, and 
long-term considerations. In particular, measures are needed to address the issues of security 
of supply, climate change, and sustainable development, while ensuring that future economic 
growth is not threatened. 

Fusion has the potential to make a major contribution to the realisation of a sustainable and 
secure  supply  for  the  EU  in  a  few  decades  from  now.  Its  successful  development  would 
provide energy which is safe, sustainable and environmentally friendly. The long-term goal of 
European  fusion  research,  embracing  all  the  fusion  activities  in  the  Member  States  and 
associated third countries, is the joint creation of prototype reactors for power stations which 
meet these requirements, and are economically viable. 

The  strategy  to  achieve  the  long-term  goal  entails,  as  its  first  priority,  the  construction  of 
ITER  (a  major  experimental  facility  which  will  demonstrate  the  scientific  and  technical 
feasibility of fusion power), followed by the construction of DEMO, a "demonstration" fusion 
power  station.  This  will  be  accompanied  by  a  dynamic  programme  of  supporting  R&D  for 
ITER  and  for  the  developments  in  fusion  materials,  technologies  and  physics  required  for 
DEMO. This would involve European industry, the fusion Associations and third countries, in 
particular Parties to the ITER Agreement. 

Activities 

•  The realisation of ITER 

This  includes  activities  for  the  joint  realisation  of  ITER  (as  an  international  research 
infrastructure), in particular for site preparation, establishing the ITER Organisation and the 
European  Joint  Undertaking  for  ITER,  management  and  staffing,  general  technical  and 
administrative support, construction of equipment and installations and support to the project 
during construction. 

EN 

81 

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•  R&D in preparation of ITER operation 

A focused physics and technology programme will exploit the facilities and resources in the 
fusion programme, including JET. It will assess specific key ITER technologies, consolidate 
ITER  project  choices,  and  prepare  for  ITER  operation  through  experimental  and  theoretical 
activities. 

•  Technology activities in preparation of DEMO 

This  entails  the  vigorous  development  of  fusion  materials  and  key  technologies  for  fusion, 
and  the  establishment  of  a  dedicated  project  team  to  prepare  for  the  construction  of  the 
International Fusion Materials Irradiation Facility (IFMIF) to qualify materials for DEMO. It 
will include irradiation testing and modelling of materials, studies of the DEMO conceptual 
design, and studies of the safety, environmental and socio-economic aspects of fusion energy. 

•  R&D activities for the longer term 

The  activities  will  include  further  development  of  improved  concepts  for  magnetic 
confinement  schemes  with  potential  advantages  for  Fusion  power  stations  (focussed  on  the 
completion of the construction of the W7-X stellarator device), theory and modelling aimed at 
a comprehensive understanding of the behaviour of fusion plasmas and co-ordination, in the 
context  of  a  keep-in-touch  activity,  of  Member  States’  civil  research  activities  on  inertial 
confinement.  

•  Human resources, education and training 

In view of the immediate and medium term needs of ITER, and for the further development of 
fusion, initiatives aimed at ensuring that adequate human resources will be available, in terms 
of numbers, range of skills and high level training and experience will be pursued. 

•  Infrastructures 

The construction of the international fusion energy research project ITER will be an element 
of the new research infrastructures with a strong European dimension. 

NUCLEAR FISSION AND RADIATION PROTECTION 

Objective 

Establishing  a  sound  scientific  and  technical  basis  in  order  to  accelerate  practical 
developments  for  the  safer  management  of  long-lived  radioactive  waste,  promoting 
safer,  more  resource-efficient  and  competitive  exploitation  of  nuclear  energy  and 
ensuring  a  robust  and  socially  acceptable  system  of  protection  of  man  and  the 
environment against the effects of ionising radiation. 

Rationale 

Nuclear power currently generates one third of all electricity consumed in the EU and is the 
most significant source of carbon-free base-load electricity presently available. The European 
nuclear sector as a whole is typified by cutting-edge technology and provides highly skilled 
employment for several hundred thousand people. As an indigenous and dependable source of 
energy,  nuclear  power  contributes  to  the  EU’s  independence  and  security  of  supply,  with 

EN 

82 

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more  advanced  nuclear  technology  offering  the  prospect  of  significant  improvements  in 
efficiency and use  of  resources, at the same time ensuring even higher safety standards and 
producing less waste than current designs.  

There are, however, important concerns that affect the continued use of this energy source in 
the  EU.  The  key  issues  are  operational  reactor safety  and  management  of  long-lived  waste, 
both of which are being addressed through continued work at the technical level, though allied 
political and societal inputs are also required. In all uses of radiation, throughout industry and 
medicine  alike,  the  overriding  principle  is  the  protection  of  man  and  the  environment.  All 
thematic domains to be addressed here are characterised by an overriding concern to ensure 
high levels of safety. Similarly there are clearly identifiable needs throughout nuclear science 
and engineering relating to availability of research infrastructures and expertise. In addition, 
the individual technical areas are linked by key cross-cutting topics such as the nuclear fuel 
cycle,  actinide  chemistry,  risk  analysis  and  safety  assessment  and  even  societal  and 
governance issues. 

Research will also be needed to explore new scientific and technological opportunities and to 
respond in a flexible way to new policy needs that arise during the course of the Framework 
Programme. 

Activities 

•  Management of radioactive waste 

Implementation oriented  research and development activities on deep  geological  disposal of 
spent  fuel  and  long-lived  radioactive  waste  and,  as  appropriate,  demonstration  on  the 
technologies and safety, and to underpin the development of a common European view on the 
main  issues  related  to  the  management  and  disposal  of  waste.  Research  on  partitioning  and 
transmutation and/or other concepts aimed at reducing the amount and/or hazard of the waste 
for disposal. 

•  Reactor systems 

Research to underpin the continued safe operation of existing reactor systems (including fuel 
cycle  facilities),  taking  into  account  new  challenges  such  as  life-time  extension  and 
development  of  new  advanced  safety  assessment  methodologies  (both  the  technical  and 
human element), and to assess the potential and safety aspects of future reactor systems in the 
short and medium term, thereby maintaining the high safety standards already achieved within 
the EU.  

•  Radiation protection  

Research, in particular on the risks from low doses, on medical uses and on the management 
of  accidents,  to  provide  the  scientific  basis  for  a  robust,  equitable  and  socially  acceptable 
system of protection that will not unduly limit the beneficial and widespread uses of radiation 
in medicine and industry (including the generation of nuclear energy). Research to minimise 
the threat posed by nuclear and radiological terrorism and mitigate its impact. 

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•  Infrastructures 

To  support  the  availability  of  research  infrastructures  such  as  material  test  reactors, 
underground  research  laboratories  and  radiobiology  facilities  and  tissue  banks,  necessary  to 
maintain  high  standards  of  technical  achievement,  innovation  and  safety  in  the  European 
nuclear sector. 

•  Human resources and training 

To  support  the  retention  and  further  development  of  scientific  competence  and  human 
capacity in order to guarantee the availability of suitably qualified researchers and employees 
in the nuclear sector over the longer term. 

NUCLEAR ACTIVITIES OF THE JOINT RESEARCH CENTRE 

Objective 

To  provide  customer  driven  scientific  and  technical  support  to  the  EU  policy  making 
process in the nuclear field, ensuring support to the implementation and monitoring of 
existing policies while flexibly responding to new policy demands. 

Rationale 

The Joint Research Centre supports the objectives of the European strategy for energy supply, 
particularly to help matching the Kyoto objectives. The EU has a recognised competence in 
many aspects of nuclear technology, and this is built on a solid basis of past successes in the 
domain. The usefulness of the JRC in its support to EU policies and in its contribution to the 
new trends in nuclear research are based on its scientific expertise and its integration in the 
international scientific community. On the one hand the JRC has competent staff and state-of-
the-art  facilities  to  carry  out  recognized  scientific/technical  work;  and  on  the  other  hand  it 
supports the policy of the EU to maintain basic competencies and expertise for the future by 
training young scientists and fostering their mobility. New demand has emerged in particular 
in  the  external  relations  and  security  related  policies.  In  these  cases,  in-house  and  secure 
information/analyses/systems are needed which cannot always be obtained on the market.  

The  nuclear  activities  of  the  JRC  aim  to  satisfy  the  R&D  requirements  to  support  both 
Commission and Member States. The objective of this programme is to develop and assemble 
knowledge,  to  provide  input  to  the  debate  on  nuclear  energy  production,  its  safety  and 
reliability, its sustainability and control, its threats and challenges, including innovative/future 
reactor systems. 

Activities 

The JRC activities will focus on: 

Nuclear Waste Management and Environmental Impact aiming to understand the nuclear 
fuel processes from production of energy to waste storage and to develop effective solutions 
for  the  management  of  high  level  nuclear  waste  following  the  two  major  options  (direct 
storage or partitioning and transmutation);  

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Nuclear Safety, in implementing research on existing as well as on new fuel cycles and on 
reactor safety of both Western and Russian reactor types as well as on new reactor design. In 
addition the JRC will contribute and co-ordinate the European contribution to the Generation 
IV International Forum R&D initiative, in which the best research organisations in the world 
are involved; 

Nuclear  Security,  in  supporting  the  accomplishment  of  Community  commitments,  in 
particular the control of the fuel  cycle  facilities emphasising the back-end  of the fuel cycle, 
the monitoring of the radioactivity in the environment, or the implementation of the additional 
protocol  and  the  integrated  safeguards,  and  the  prevention  of  the  diversion  of  nuclear  and 
radioactive material associated with illicit trafficking of such material. 

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ANNEX II 

FUNDING SCHEMES 

Subject  to  the  rules  for  participation  established  for  the  implementation  of  the  seventh 
Framework  Programme,  the  EU  will  support  research  and  technological  development 
activities,  including  demonstration  activities  in  the  specific  programmes  through  a  range  of 
funding  schemes.  These  schemes  will  be  used,  either  alone  or  in  combination,  to  fund 
different categories of actions implemented throughout the Framework Programme. 

1. 

FUNDING SCHEMES IN FUSION ENERGY 

In  the  field  of  fusion  energy  research,  the  particular  nature  of  the  activities  in  the  area 
necessitates the implementation of specific arrangements. Financial support will be given to 
activities carried out on the basis of procedures set out in: 

1.1. 

1.2. 

1.3. 

1.4. 

1.5. 

1.6. 

The Contracts of Association, between the Commission and Member States or fully 
Associated  Third  States  or  entities  within  Member  States  or  fully  Associated  Third 
States  which  provide  for  the  execution  of  part  of  the  EU  fusion  energy  research 
programme according to Article 10 of the Treaty; 

The  European  Fusion  Development  Agreement  (EFDA),  a  multilateral  agreement 
concluded  between  the  Commission  and  organisations  in,  or  acting  for,  Member 
States and Associated States providing inter alia the framework for further research 
on  fusion  technology  in  associated  organisations  and  in  industry,  use  of  the  JET 
facilities and the European contribution to international cooperation; 

The European Joint Undertaking for ITER, based on the provisions of Article 45-51, 
Chapter 5, Title II of the Treaty;  

International agreements between Euratom and third countries covering activities in 
the  field  of  fusion  energy  research  and  development,  in  particular  the  ITER 
Agreement; 

Any other multilateral agreement concluded between the Community and associated 
organisations, in particular the Agreement on Staff Mobility; 

Cost-sharing actions to promote and contribute to fusion energy research with bodies 
in  the  Member  States  or  the  States  associated  with  the  Euratom  framework 
programme in which there is no Contract of Association.  

In  addition  to  the  above  activities,  actions  to  promote  and  develop  human  resources, 
fellowships,  integrated  infrastructures  initiatives  as  well  as  specific  support  actions  may  be 
undertaken in particular to coordinate fusion energy research, to undertake studies in support 
of  these  activities,  to  support  publications,  information  exchange;  and  training  in  order  to 
promote technology transfer. 

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2. 

FUNDING SCHEMES IN OTHER FIELDS 

The activities in other fields than fusion energy by the Euratom Framework Programme will 
be funded through a range of funding schemes. These schemes will be used, either alone or in 
combination, to fund different categories of actions implemented throughout this Framework 
Programme.  

The  decisions  for  specific  programmes,  work  programmes  and  calls  for  proposals  will 
mention, as and when appropriate:  

•  The type(s) of scheme(s) used to fund different categories of actions; 

•  The  categories  of  participants  (such  as  research  organisations,  universities, 

industry, public authorities) which can benefit from it; 

•  The 

types  of  activities  (research,  development,  demonstration, 

training, 
dissemination,  transfer  of  knowledge  and  other  related  activities)  which  can  be 
funded through each of them. 

Where different funding schemes can be used, the work programmes may specify the funding 
scheme to be used for the topic on which proposals are invited. 

The funding schemes are the following: 

a) 

To  support  actions  which  are  primarily  implemented  on  the  basis  of  calls  for 
proposals: 

1. 

Collaborative projects 

Support to research projects carried out by consortia with participants from different 
countries,  aiming  at  developing  new  knowledge,  new  technology,  products  or 
common resources for research. The size, scope and internal organisation of projects 
can vary from field to field and from topic to topic. Projects can range from small or 
medium-scale focused research actions to larger integrating projects which mobilise 
a significant volume of resources for achieving a defined objective.  

2.  Networks of Excellence 

Support  to  joint  research  programmes  implemented  by  a  number  of  research 
organisations  integrating  their  activities  in  a  given  field,  carried  out  by  research 
teams  in  the  framework  of  longer  term  co-operation.  The  implementation  of  these 
joint  programmes  will  require  a  formal  commitment  from  the  organisations 
integrating part of their resources and their activities.  

3. 

Coordination and support actions 

Support  to  activities  aimed  at  coordinating  or  supporting  research  (networking, 
exchanges,  studies,  conferences,  etc).  These  actions  may  also  be  implemented  by 
means other than calls for proposals.  

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4.  Actions to promote and develop human resources and mobility  

Support for training and career development of researchers.  

b) 

to support actions implemented on the basis of decisions by the Council, based on a 
proposal  from  the  Commission,  the  Community  will  provide  financial  support  to 
multi-financed large-scale initiatives:  

–  A  financial  contribution  from  the  Community  to  the  implementation  of  Joint 
Undertakings carried out on the basis of the procedures and provisions set out in 
articles 45 -51, Chapter 5 of Title II of the Euratom Treaty. 

–  A  financial  contribution  from  the  Community  to  the  development  of  new 

infrastructures of European interest. 

The Community will implement the funding schemes in compliance with the provisions of the 
regulation  adopted  in  the  rules  for  participation  of  undertakings,  research  centres  and 
universities,  the  relevant  State  aid  instruments,  in  particular  the  Community  framework  for 
state aid to research and development, as well as international rules in this area. In compliance 
with this international framework, it will be necessary to be able to adjust the scale and form 
of  financial  participation  on  a  case-by-case  basis,  in  particular  if  funding  from  other  public 
sector  sources  is  available,  including  other  sources  of  Community  financing  such  as  the 
European Investment Bank (EIB).  

In the case of participants to an indirect action established in a region lagging in development 
(convergence  regions  and  outermost  regions50)  complementary  funding  from  the  Structural 
Funds will be mobilised wherever possible and appropriate.  

3. 

DIRECT ACTIONS - JOINT RESEARCH CENTRE 

The  Community  will  undertake  activities  implemented  by  the  Joint  Research  Centre,  which 
are referred to as direct actions. 

50 

Convergence regions are those set out in Article 5 of the proposal for a Council Regulation laying down 
general  provisions  on  the  European  Regional  Development  Fund,  the  European  Social  Fund  and  the 
Cohesion Fund - COM(2004) 492. This includes “convergence” objective regions, regions eligible for 
funding from the Cohesion fund, and outermost regions. 

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LEGISLATIVE FINANCIAL STATEMENT 

1.  NAME OF THE PROPOSAL : 

Proposal  for  a  Council  Decision  concerning  the  seventh  framework  programme  of  the 
European  Atomic  Energy  Community  (Euratom)  for  nuclear  research  and  training 
activities (2007 to 2011) – Building the Europe of Knowledge 

2.  ABM / ABB FRAMEWORK 

Policy  Area(s)  concerned  and  associated  Activity/Activities:  RESEARCH  and  DIRECT 
RESEARCH 

3.  BUDGET LINES 

3.1. Budget lines (operational lines and related technical and administrative assistance 

lines) including headings : 

Titles: 08 and 10 

3.2. Duration of the action and of the financial impact: 

2007-2013 subject to the approval of new financial perspectives framework 

3.3. Budgetary characteristics (add rows if necessary) : 

Budget 
line 

and 

08 
10 

XX.01 

XX.01.05 

Type of expenditure 

New 

EFTA 
contribution 

Contributions 
from applicant 
countries 

Heading in 
financial 
perspective 

Non-
comp 

Comp/ 

Non-
comp  

Diff51/ 

Non-
diff52 

Non-
diff 

NO 

NO 

YES 

No [1a] 

NO 

NO 

NO 

No [ 1a…] 

NO 

NO 

YES 

No [ 1a…] 

51 
52 

Differentiated appropriations 
Non-differentiated appropriatins hereafter referred to as NDA. 

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4.  SUMMARY OF RESOURCES 

4.1. Financial Resources 

4.1.1.  Summary of commitment appropriations (CA) and payment appropriations 

(PA) 

Section 
no. 

Expenditure type 

Operational expenditure53 

Commitment 
Appropriations (CA) 

8.1 

Payment 
Appropriations (PA) 

a 

b 

EUR million (to 3 decimal places) cash prices 

2007 

2008 

2009 

2010 

2011 

2012 

2013 

Total 

280,916 

358,377 

477,708 

493,220 

527,103 

619,115 

643,550 

3.399,989 

Administrative expenditure within reference amount54 

Technical 
administrative 
assistance (NDA) 

& 

8.2.4 

c 

TTOOTTAALL  RREEFFEERREENNCCEE  AAMMOOUUNNTT  

Commitment 
Appropriations 

Payment 
Appropriations 

a+c 

b+c 

177,503   

190,795   

197,945   

203,300   

184,645   

188,338   

192,105   

1.334,631   

458,419 

549,172 

675,653 

696,520 

711,748 

807,453 

835,655 

4.734,621 

Administrative expenditure not included in reference amount55 

Human resources and 
associated 
expenditure (NDA) 

Administrative  costs, 
than  human 
other 
resources 
and 
associated  costs,  not 
included  in  reference 
amount (NDA) 

8.2.5 d 

8.2.6 e 

4,986    

5,085    

5,187    

5,291    

5,397    

5,504    

5,615    

37,064    

0,148 

0,151 

0,154 

0,157 

0,160 

0,163 

0,167 

1,101 

53 
54 
55 

Expenditure that does not fall under Chapter xx 01 of the Title xx concerned. 
Expenditure within article xx 01 05 of Title xx. 
Expenditure within chapter xx 01 other than articles xx 01 04 or xx 01 05. 

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    Total indicative financial cost of intervention     

TOTAL  CA 
cost 
Resources 

of 

TOTAL  PA 
cost 
Resources 

of 

including 
Human 

including 
Human 

a+c
+d
+e 

b+c
+d
+e 

463,553   

554,408   

680,994   

701,968   

717,305    

813,121   

841,437    

4.772,785   

Co-financing details 

If  the  proposal  involves  co-financing  by  Member  States,  or  other  bodies  (please  specify 
which),  an  estimate  of  the  level  of  this  co-financing  should  be  indicated  in  the  table  below 
(additional  lines  may  be  added  if  different  bodies  are  foreseen  for  the  provision  of  the  co-
financing): 

EUR million (to 3 decimal places) 

n + 1 

n + 2 

n + 3 

n + 4 

Year 
n 

n  +  5 
and 
later 

Total 

Co-financing body 

…………………… 

TOTAL CA including co-
financing 

f 

a+c
+d+
e+f 

4.1.2.  Compatibility with Financial Programming 

⌧ 

(cid:133) 

(cid:133) 

 Proposal  is  compatible  with  next  financial  programming  (Commission’s 
February 2004 Communication on the financial perspectives 2007-2013 COM 
(2004) 101). 

Proposal  will  entail  reprogramming  of  the  relevant  heading  in  the  financial 
perspective. 

Proposal  may  require  application  of  the  provisions  of  the  Interinstitutional 
Agreement56  (i.e.  flexibility 
the  financial 
perspective). 

instrument  or  revision  of 

4.1.3.  Financial impact on Revenue 

(cid:133) 

Proposal has no financial implications on revenue 

⌧ 

Proposal has financial impact – the effect on revenue is as follows: 

56 

See points 19 and 24 of the Interinstitutional agreement. 

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Certain  Associated  States  may  contribute  to  the  funding  of  the  framework 
programmes. 

In accordance with Article 161 of the Financial Regulation, the Joint Research 
Centre may benefit from revenue from various types of competitive activities 
and from other services provided for outside bodies. 

In accordance with Article 18 of the Financial Regulation, certain revenue may 
be used to finance specific items. 

NB: All details and observations relating to the method of calculating the effect on 
revenue should be shown in a separate annex. 

Budget line 

Revenue 

EUR million (to one decimal place) 

Situation following action 

[Yea
r n] 

[n+1] [n+2] [n+3

] 

[n+4]  [n+5]

57

Prior to
action 
[Year 
n-1] 

a) Revenue in absolute terms 

b) Change in revenue 

 ∆ 

(Please specify each revenue budget line involved, adding the appropriate number 
of rows to the table if there is an effect on more than one budget line.) 

4.2. Human Resources FTE (including officials, temporary and external staff) – see detail 

under point 8.2.1. 

Annual requirements 

Year n 

n + 1 

n + 2 

n + 3 

n + 4 

n + 5  
and 
later 

Total 
number 
human resources 

of 

5.  CHARACTERISTICS AND OBJECTIVES 

Details  of  the  context  of  the  proposal  are  required  in  the  Explanatory  Memorandum. 
This section of the Legislative Financial Statement should include the following specific 
complementary information: 

57 

Additional columns should be added if necessary i.e. if the duration of the action exceeds 6 years. 

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5.1. Need to be met in the short or long term 

 The  7th  Framework  Programme  will  be  an  integral  part  of  the  EU  efforts  towards  the 
knowledge  economy  and  society  in  Europe,  together  with  other  specific  endeavours  on 
education, training and innovation. The elaboration of the objectives, as illustrated in the 
Communication  COM  (2004)  353  of  16.6.2004  on  the  future  European  research  policy 
and very favourably viewed by the stakeholders and the other European institutions, is at 
the basis of the Commission proposal for the 7th Framework Programme. 

 The 7th  Framework Programme is characterised both  by continuity  with the current   6th 
Framework  Programme  (e.g.  in  the  context  of  the  cooperative  research)  and  the 
introduction  of  novel  elements  at  the  level  of  content  and  instruments  to  address  the 
arising  needs  at  EU  level  (e.g.  support  to  new  infrastructures,  co-ordination  of  national 
research programmes on a large scale).  

The main instruments to be used will be the known ones, with important efforts already 
undertaken and more envisaged to simplify all procedures of the Framework Programme 
and make them friendlier for the proposers.   

These  elements  are  lucidly  presented  in  the  Explanatory  Memorandum  and  in  the 
Communication “Building the ERA of Knowledge for Growth” that is put forward at the 
same moment as the Commission proposals for the 7th Framework Programme. 

5.2. Value-added of Community involvement and coherence of the proposal with other 

financial instruments and possible synergy 

Intervention  at  EU  level  is  justified  in  the  field  of  R&D  policy.  There  are  a  number  of 
cases where it can be more effective to provide support for research at EU level than at 
national  level.  Some  research  activities  are  of  such  a  scale  that  no  single  Member  State 
can provide the necessary resources and expertise. In these cases, EU projects can allow 
research  to  achieve  the  required  “critical  mass”,  while  lowering  commercial  risk  and 
producing a leverage effect on private investment. EU-scale actions also play an important 
role in transferring skills and knowledge across frontiers. This helps to foster excellence in 
research  and  development 
through  enhancing  capability,  quality  and  EU-wide 
competition, as well as improving human capacity in S&T through training, mobility and 
European  career  development.  EU  support  can  also  contribute  to  a  better  integration  of 
European  R&D,  by  encouraging  the  coordination  of  national  policies,  by  the  EU-wide 
dissemination of results, and by funding research for pan-European policy challenges.  

An in-depth analysis is provided for in the “Impact Assessment and Ex Ante Evaluation 
Report for the Commission proposals for the Council and European Parliament decisions 
on  the  7th  Framework  Programme  (EC  and  Euratom)”.  This  document  represents  a 
technical  annex  to  the  legislative  proposal  in  the  form  of  a  staff  working  document.  A 
whole chapter of the report is dedicated to this question (see its Annex 1, chapter 3). The 
report  also  addresses  alternative  options  for  Community  intervention  and  the  impacts 
likely to result from each policy option. 

The 7th Framework Programme will involve modes of support for research activities from 
EU,  international,  national  and  regional  sources.  These  will  be  complementary  to  the 
support to be provided by the European Investment Bank and the Structural Funds. More 
information  is  included  in  the  Communication  “Building  the  ERA  of  Knowledge  for 
Growth” (see above) and in the Explanatory Memorandum. 

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5.3. Objectives, expected results and related indicators of the proposal in the context of 

the ABM framework 

“Reinvigorating”  the  Lisbon  agenda  is  a  key  goal  of  the  EU  and  the  European 
Commission for the coming years. This implies, as a first priority, the full realisation of 
the  knowledge  society.    In  the  same  direction,  the  strategic  objectives  of  the  College, 
COM  (2005)  12  final,  have  highlighted  the  importance  of  research  and  development  as 
one  of  the  key  drivers  of  prosperity  and  growth.  In  particular  this  will  mean  the  Union 
committing  to  invest  3%  of  GDP  in  research,  with  one  third  coming  from  the  public 
sector.  This message is reinforced by the Communication on ‘A new start for the Lisbon 
Strategy’ COM (2005)24.  

The  objectives  set  out  here  are  therefore  aimed  precisely  at  supporting  the  aims  of  the 
Lisbon  agenda  through  Community  funded  research  activities.  It  has  been  demonstrated 
that  such  research  plays  a  critically  important  role  in  promoting  growth  and  prosperity, 
building  the  European  knowledge  base  including  research  capacities  and  developing  an 
integrated and strengthened European Research Area.      

Objectives are in the following areas:  

1. 
Fusion Energy Research:  Developing the knowledge base for, and realising ITER as 
the major step towards, the creation of prototype reactors for power stations which are safe, 
sustainable, environmentally responsible, and economically viable. 

2. Nuclear Fission and Radiation Protection: Establishing a sound scientific and technical 
basis  in  order  to  accelerate  practical  developments  for  the  safer  management  of  long-lived 
radioactive  waste,  promoting  safer,  more  resource-efficient  and  competitive  exploitation  of 
nuclear energy and ensuring a robust and socially acceptable system of protection of man and 
the environment against the effects of ionising radiation. 

Nuclear  Activities  of  the  Joint  Research  Centre:  To  provide  customer  driven 
3. 
scientific and technical support to the EU policy making process in the nuclear field, ensuring 
support to the implementation and monitoring of existing policies while flexibly responding 
to new policy demands. 

Performance  indicators  will  be  developed  at  three  levels.  Quantitative  and  qualitative 
indicators will be developed to show the path or direction of scientific and technical progress, 
such  as  new  standards  and  tools,  scientific  techniques,  patent  applications  and  licence 
agreements new products, process and services.   

Management  indicators  will  be  developed  to  monitor  performance  internally  and  support 
senior management decision making.  These could include level of budget execution, time to 
contract and time to payment.   

Outcome  (impact)  indicators  will  be  used  to  assess  the  overall  effectiveness  of  the  research 
against high level objectives. These cold include assessment at the aggregate the Framework 
Programme  Level (e.g. impact on the achievement of the Lisbon, Goeteborg, Barcelona and 
other objectives) and assessment at the SP level (e.g. contribution made to the EU S&T and 
economic performance). 

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More information on this point is included in the Annex of the “Impact Assessment and Ex 
Ante  Evaluation  Report  for  the  Commission  proposals  for  the  Council  and  European 
Parliament  decisions  on  the  7th  Framework  Programme  (EC  and  Euratom)”,  Chapter 6:  
Towards  an  effective,  user-friendly  management  and  outcome-oriented  new  7th  Framework 
Programme , Section 3: New programme evaluation and monitoring system. 

5.4  Method of Implementation (indicative) 

Show below the method(s)58 chosen for the implementation of the action. 

⌧  Centralised Management 

⌧     Directly by the Commission 

⌧    

Indirectly by delegation to: 

⌧       

Executive Agencies 

(cid:133)   

(cid:133)  

Bodies set up by the Communities as referred to in art. 
185 of the Financial Regulation 

National public-sector bodies/bodies with public-service 
mission  

ٱ  Shared or decentralised management 

ٱ  With Member states 

ٱ  With Third countries 

ٱ  Joint management with international organisations (please specify) 

Relevant comments: 

As a general principle when deciding on the most appropriate management structures, 
there must be clear lines of responsibility within the Commission and clean interfaces 
between the Commission and any separate management structures. In addition, where 
the  link  between  the  detailed  follow-up  of  the  actual  projects  funded  and  the 
development  of  S&T  policy  is  clear,  any  shift  of  management  away  from  the 
Commission  services  cannot  go  beyond  “upstream”  tasks  supporting  the  submission 
and evaluation of proposals. Where this link between the individual project follow-up 
and the definition of scientific priorities is not direct or does not exist, management of 
the “downstream” tasks of making contracts and running the projects could be given 
to an executive agency. 

With  this  principle  in  mind,  the  following  is  proposed  for  the  management  of  the 
various parts of the Euratom Framework Programme: 

58 

If  more  than  one  method  is  indicated  please  provide  additional  details  in  the  "Relevant  comments" 
section of this point. 

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(1) For all RTD projects, including collaborative research projects, the hypothesis 
used  is  that  it  will  not  be  possible  to  manage  with  the  status  quo  (i.e.  full  internal 
direct management with limited use of outsourcing through commercial contracts). In 
this case,  the executive agency set up for “upstream” implementation tasks under the 
7th EC Framework Programme will be used. Tasks of  this agency would  include the 
reception and administrative management of proposals submitted, inviting and paying 
expert  evaluators  (chosen  by  the  Commission),  providing  logistical  support  to 
proposal evaluation and possible further tasks, such as financial viability checking and 
provision  of  statistics.  The  continued  possibility  to  sub-contract  specific  tasks  to 
private companies (e.g. for the development of IT tools) will not be ruled out.  

The evaluation, contracting and project management of RTD projects would be carried 
out  by  the  Commission  services,  in  order  to  maintain  the  close  link  between  such 
activities and policy formulation. 

Flexibility  should  be  maintained  to  allow  the  possibility  of  adapting  these 
management arrangements depending on experience acquired during the first years of 
the 7th Framework Programme. 

(2) The European Joint Undertaking, based on the provisions of Articles 45-51, Title 
II  of  Chapter  V  of  the  Euratom  Treaty,  will  be  used  for  the  creation  of  ITER 
(International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor). 

EN 

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6.  MONITORING AND EVALUATION 

6.1. Monitoring system 

Monitoring  of  implementation  management  would  be  ensured  by  operational  senior 
management within the Commission on a continuous basis with annual check points and 
using a common set of management performance indicators.  Adequate resource would be 
given  to  this  process.    The  annual  results  of  this  exercise  will  be  used  to  inform  senior 
management and as an input to the multi-annual assessment exercise.  

The  requirements  and  systems  for  data  collection  regarding  proposal  evaluation  and 
contract preparation are currently under review given the needs of providing a robust and 
simplified data set while imposing minimum burden on research programme participants.   

6.2. Evaluation 

6.2.1.  Ex-ante evaluation 
In line with the Commission requirements, an ex ante evaluation of the 7th Framework 
Programme  legislative proposals has been undertaken. This evaluation is incorporated 
in the overall Impact Assessment report of the European Commission’s proposals for 
the European parliament and Council decisions on the 7th Framework Programme (EC 
and EURATOM).  

The  7th  Framework  Programme    Impact  Assessment  exercise  was  based  upon  inputs 
from  stakeholders, 
internal  and  external  evaluation  and  other  studies,  and 
contributions  from  recognised  European  evaluation  and  impact  assessment  experts. 
The Impact Assessment exercise covered the period from April 2004 to April 2005. It 
was conducted and monitored by the Commission services with the help of a number 
of external experts.  

6.2.2.  Measures taken following an intermediate/ex-post evaluation (lessons learned 

from similar experiences in the past) 

A  Five  Year  Assessment  of  the  implementation  and  achievements  of  Community 
research over the five preceding years was carried out between June-December 2004 
by a panel of independent high level experts.  The assessment was based on analysis 
of  an  extensive  database  of  evaluation  and  policy  reports  concerning  Community 
research,  8  separate  studies  and  analyses  prepared  specifically  as  inputs  to  the 
assessment  exercise;  interviews  with  and  presentations  by  Commission  staff;  and 
discussion by panel members within their own constituencies.   

The  results  of  the  Five  Year  Assessment  were  made  available  on  10  February  2005 
and  on  XX/XX/2005,  the  Commission  communicated  the  conclusions  of  the 
assessment, accompanied by its observations, to the European Parliament, the Council, 
the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions. 

A  synthesis  of  the  key  findings  of  the  Five  Year  Assessment  report  and  how  these 
have been integrated into the proposal (in italics) are as follows:   

EN 

97 

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• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

It was noted that the Framework Programmes have provided a major contribution to 
Europe’s  knowledge  base  and  the  restructuring  of  Europe’s  research  system  to  be 
more  innovative  and  that  the  Commission’s  proposal  to  substantially  increase  the 
European  research  budget  in  the  future  is  a  welcome  step  in  the  right  direction.  The 
proposal is for a substantial increase in funding of the Framework.   

It was recommended that a clearer vision or articulation of what EU research aims to 
achieve  is  needed  to  help  set  clear  objectives,  define  precisely  the  Added  Value  for 
Europe,  reinforce  the  impetus  given  by  the  European  Research  Area  and  get  the 
necessary support from the public for these activities. The proposal is accompanied by 
a  specific  Communication  to  describe  the  relationship  between  knowledge  creation 
and growth  and has  been developed in parallel with, the ex ante Impact Assessment 
which gives a clear and detailed statement on the expected benefits from the proposed 
research activities.      

It was recommended that the industrial orientation and participation in the Framework 
Programme must be enhanced to help strengthen European competitiveness.  Links to 
other EU policies are needed such as intellectual property rights (IPR), state aid rules 
and  also  encouragement  of  public-private  collaboration  such  as  through  joint 
technology initiatives. The proposal reflects the need for a strengthened and simplified 
approach  to  Community  research  funding  with  detailed  attention  to  the  needs  of  the 
industrial sector, including different types of industrial participant such as large firms 
and  SMEs.  The  promotion  of  joint  technology  initiatives  is  one  of  the  innovative 
features to promote industrial participation in the programme.   

It  was  recommended  that  excelling  in  science  and  developing  human  resources  for 
research will be crucial for further development of the knowledge-based society. This 
will  require  the  extension  in  scale  and  scope  of  human  resources  and  mobility 
programmes.  The  proposal  reflects  this  need  through  the  enhanced  measures  for 
human  resources  development  with  the  commitment  for  more  flexibility  and  greater 
articulation  between  the  public  and  private  sectors.  It  is  also  proposed  to  create  a 
European Research Council to promote riskier research and excellence in science.    

It  was  recommended  that  enhancing  citizens  trust  in  science,  technology  and 
innovation  and  better  understanding  of  the  legitimacy  of  research  policies  are 
necessary  to  tackle  society’s  concerns  appropriately  by  science  and  research  policy 
objectives. Impacts and actual results should be communicated to the public at large in 
a meaningful manner. The proposal reflects these needs through a specific approach 
to Science in Society as one of the activities under ‘Capacities’.  

•  Simplifying  the  access  and  participation  to  the  Framework  Programme,  notably 
through the streamlining of its administration, is essential to reinforce its positive role 
in the EU research landscape. This is not least true for the new Member States which 
face  particular  problems  that  are  to  be  addressed.  For  reasons  of  continuity,  it  was 
recommended  to  maintain  the  current  implementation  instruments.  Extensive  efforts 
are  ongoing  towards  a  major  simplification  of  Framework  Programme  procedures, 
the proposed results of which are incorporated throughout the proposal.     

6.2.3.  Terms and frequency of future evaluation 

Not  later  than  2010,  the  Commission  shall  carry  out  with  the  assistance  of  external 
experts,  an  interim  evaluation  of  the  seventh  framework  programme  and  its  specific 
programmes on the quality of the research activities under way and  progress towards 
the objectives set.     

EN 

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A coordinated programme of studies for: horizontal assessments of such topics as the 
impact  of  research  on  issues  such  as  productivity,  competitiveness  and  employment; 
structuring  effects  of  the  Framework  Programme    on  the  ERA  (fragmentation, 
excellence, coordination) through the formation and development of commercial and 
knowledge networks, and the creation and support to infrastructures; and the impact of 
Community  research  on    strategic  decision  making  in  companies  and  research 
organisations  and  national,  European  and  regional  authorities;  assessment  of  impact 
and  achievements  at  portfolio,  programme  and  higher  levels  against  the  strategic 
objectives and indicators that are set within a clearly defined programme logic. 

Two years following the completion of this framework programme, the Commission 
shall have carried out an external evaluation by independent experts of its rationale, 
implementation  and  achievements.  This  would  be  supported  by  a  coherent  set  of 
independent studies, the interim evaluation and other evaluation activities carried out 
over the life-time of the Framework Programme, as listed above.  The report of this 
exercise would be presented to all interested stakeholders, including the Parliament 
and Council. Furthermore, this report could  feed into  future  ex  ante evaluation  and 
impact assessments by the Commission. 

An independent ex post programme evaluation would be undertaken 2 years after the 
end of the 6th Framework Programme.   

Evaluation  methods  to  include:  expert  panels;  sampled  analyses,  case  studies  and 
surveys;  longitudinal  studies;  studies  coordinated  with  Members  States;  where 
appropriate, cost-benefit analysis or follow-on macroeconomic impact analysis. 

7.  ANTI-FRAUD MEASURES  

Measures  will  be  taken  to  ensure  that  the  same  anti-fraud  measures  taken  in  the  sixth 
framework  programmes’  rules  for  participation  and  contracts  will  be  brought  forward  and 
reinforced  in  the  seventh  framework  programmes.  These  include  measures  such  a  financial 
collective  responsibility,  sanctions  against  overcharging,  measures  to  ensure  the  effective 
recovery of amounts due to the Commission, and administrative and legal measures taken to 
ensure full compliance with the Financial Regulation and its provisions regarding procedures 
for selecting and financing grants and services rendered to the Commission.  

EN 

99 

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8.  DETAILS OF RESOURCES 

8.1. Objectives of the proposal in terms of their financial cost 

Year     2007 

Year    2008 

Year 2009 

Year  2010 

Year 2011 

Year  2012  

Year 2013 

TOTAL 

No. 
output
s 

Total 
cost 

No. 
output
s 

Total 
cost 

No. 
output
s 

Total 
cost 

No. 
output
s 

Total 
cost 

No. 
output
s 

Total 
cost 

No. 
output
s 

Total 
cost 

No. 
output
s 

Total 
cost 

No. 
output
s 

Total cost 

Commitment appropriations in EUR million (to 3 decimal places) Cash prices59 

597,48
3 

713,569 

of 

(Headings 
Objectives, 
actions 
and 
outputs  should 
be provided) 

OPERATIONA
L  OBJECTIVE 
No.1 60 

(Fission 
Fusione) 

and 

356,88
6 

444,59
1 

567,90
3  

585,57
2 

689,75
1 

3.955,754 

EURATOM 
INDIRECT 
ACTIONS 

OPERATIONA
L  OBJECTIVE 
No.2  1 

EURATOM 
DIRECT 
ACTIONS-
JRC 

TOTAL COST 

101,53
3 

104,58
1 

107,75
0 

110,94
8 

114,26
5 

117,70
3 

122,087 

458,41
9 

549,17
2 

675,65
3 

696,52
0 

711,74
8 

807,45
3 

835,65
5 

778,867 

4.734,62
1 

59 
60 

The Euratom programme covers the period 2007-2011. The figures for 2012 and 2013 are only for information. 
As described under Section 5.3. 

EN 

100 

 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
8.2. Administrative Expenditure 

8.2.1.  Number and type of human resources 

Types of 
post 

Officials 
or 
temporary 
staff61 
(XX 01 
01) 

Staff to be assigned to management of the action using existing and/or 
additional resources (number of posts/FTEs) 

Year 2007  Year 2008  Year 2009  Year 2010  Year 2011  Year 2012  Year 2013 

A*/AD 

17 

17 

17 

17 

17 

17 

17 

B*, 
C*/AST 

26 

26 

26 

26 

26 

26 

26 

Staff  financed62  by  art. 
XX 01 02 

Other  staff63 
financed  by 
art. XX 01 05 

A*/AD 

572 + 13 

572 +22 

572 +13 

572+5 

B*, 
C*/AST  566 + 2 

566 + 3 

566 +2 

566 

572 

566 

572 

566 

572 

566 

TOTAL 

1181 + 15 

1181 + 15 

1181 + 25 

1181 + 15 

1181 + 5 

1181 

1181 

The EURATOM programme covers the period 2007-2011. The figures for 2012 are only for 
information 

8.2.2.  Description of tasks deriving from the action 

Implementation of the Framework Programme 

61 
62 
63 

Cost of which is NOT covered by the reference amount. 
Cost of which is NOT covered by the reference amount. 
Cost  of  which  is  included  within  the  reference  amount.  Moreover  during  the  period  2007-2010  the 
added staff is related to ITER. 

EN 

101 

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8.2.3.  Sources of human resources (statutory) 

(When more than one source is stated, please indicate the number of posts originating from 
each of the sources) 

⌧ 

Posts currently allocated to the management of the programme to be replaced 
or extended 

  ⌧ 

Posts pre-allocated within the APS/PDB exercise for year 2005 

⌧ 

Posts to be requested in the next APS/PDB procedure (2006) 

⌧ 

(cid:133) 

Posts  to  be  redeployed  using  existing  resources  within  the  managing  service 
(internal redeployment) 

Posts required for year n although not foreseen in the APS/PDB exercise of the 
year in question 

8.2.4.  Other Administrative expenditure included in reference amount (XX 01 05 – 

Expenditure on administrative management) 

EUR million (to 3 decimal places) Cash Prices 

Budget line 

(number and heading) 

Year  

2007 

Year 
2008 

Year  

2009 

Year 
2010 

Year 
2011 

Year 
2012  

Year 
2013 

TOTAL 

Technical 

1 
administrative 
(including 
costs) 

related 

and 
assistance 
staff 

     Executive agencies64 

     Other 

and 
technical 
administrative assistance 

Statutory staff 

14,772    

15,067    

15,369    

15,676    

15,990    

16,309    

16,636    

109,819    

162,731   

175,727   

182,576   

187,624   

188,656   

172,029   

175,469   

1.224,812   

xx.01 05 01 

132,100   

137,665   

142,206   

145,659   

141,128   

143,951   

146,830   

989,539    

External staff 

xx.01 05 02 

12,736    

19,810    

21,752    

22,975    

8,157    

8,321    

8,487    

102,239    

64 

Reference should be made to the specific legislative financial statement for the Executive Agency(ies) 
concerned. 

EN 

102 

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Other administrative 
expenses 

xx.01 05 03 

17,895    

18,253    

18,618    

18,990    

19,370    

19,757    

20,152    

133,034    

   Total 
administrative assistance 

Technical 

and 

177,503   

190,795   

197,945   

203,300   

184,645   

188,338   

192,105   

1.334,631   

The EURATOM programme covers the period 2007-2011. The figures for 2012 and 2013 
are only for information 

8.2.5.  Financial cost of human resources and associated costs not included in the 

reference amount 

EUR million (to 3 decimal places) cash prices 

Type of human resources 

Year  

2007 

Year 
2008 

Year  

Year  

2009 

2010 

Year 
2011 

Year 
2012  

Year 
2013  TOTAL 

Officials  and  temporary  staff 
(08 0101 and ) 

Staff  financed  by  Art  XX  01 
02  (auxiliary,  END,  contract 
staff, etc.) 

Total cost of Human 
Resources and associated 
costs (NOT in reference 
amount) 

4,986    

5,085    

5,187    

5,291    

5,397    

5,504    

5,615   

37,064   

4,986    

5,085    

5,187    

5,291    

5,397    

5,504    

5,615   

37,064   

Calculation– Administrative expenditures 

Have been calculated taking into account the following hypothesis: 

 - the number of official staff on the ex part A of the budget for DG RTD and JCR remain at 

2006 level  

-  for the part related to budget lines XX.01.05 2006 number of staff and related expenditures 

have been increased by 60 posts between 2007 and 2010 for ITER. 

-  expenditures  increased  by  the  2%  each  year  according  to  the  inflation  foreseen  such  as 
indicated in Fiche 1 REV (working document of commission services related to the financial 
perspectives), 

-  the  assumption  of  108  000  €  for  each  official  and  temporary  staff  and  70.000  €  for  the 

external staff. 

EN 

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- the amounts related to the agencies do not include officials that should be transferred from 

the staff of the Directorates General 

Calculation– Staff financed under art. XX 01 02 

 Reference should be made to Point 8.2.1, if applicable 

8.2.6 Other administrative expenditure not included in reference amount 

EUR million (to 3 decimal places) cash prices 

Year 
2007 

Year 
2008 

Year 
2009 

Year 
2010 

Year 
2011 

Year  

2012 
and 
20013 

TOTAL 

     XX 01 02 11 01 – Missions 

0,036 

0,036 

0,037 

0,038 

0,038 

0,079 

0,264 

     XX 01 02 11 02 – Meetings & Conferences 

0,001 

0,001 

0,001 

0,001 

0,001 

0,003 

0,008 

     XX 01 02 11 03 – Committees65  

0,111 

0,114 

0,116 

0,118 

0,121 

0,249 

0,828 

     XX 01 02 11 04 – Studies & consultations 

     XX 01 02 11 05 - Information systems 

 2 

  Total  Other  Management 
Expenditure (XX 01 02 11) 

3 

Other 

expenditure 

administrative 
including reference to budget line) 

nature 

of 

an 
(specify 

Total Administrative expenditure, other 
than human resources and associated 
costs (NOT included in reference 
amount) 

0,148 

0,151 

0,154 

0,157 

0,160 

0,330 

1,101 

65 

Specify the type of committee and the group to which it belongs. 

EN 

104 

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The EURATOM programme covers the period 2007-2011. The figures for 2012 and 2013 
are only for information 

Calculation - Other administrative expenditure not included in reference amount 

These figures are estimated on the basis of the 2006 DG RTD requests increased of the 2% 
for the yearly foreseen inflation. (Fiche 1 REV) 

The  needs  for  human  and  administrative  resources  shall  be  covered  within  the  allocation 
granted to the managing DG in the framework of the annual allocation procedure. 

EN 

105 

   EN