Opinion of the Committee of the Regions on the Community Legal Framework for a European Research Infrastructure (ERI) and Joint Programming in Research
Date: 2008-11-26
Institutions: Committee on Culture and Education, European Committee of the Regions
Subjects: EU Member State, EU programme, European Committee of the Regions, action programme, innovation, research, research and development, research body

C 76/6

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

31.3.2009

Opinion of the Committee of the Regions on the ‘Community Legal Framework for a European
Research Infrastructure (ERI) and Joint Programming in Research’

(2009/C 76/02)

THE COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS

— believes that the regions and local authorities play a crucial role in the European Research Area (ERA)
in that they bring this policy to the European people and are in touch with stakeholders' day-to-day
concerns;

— supports the establishment of a Community legal framework that was requested by Member States in
order to facilitate the setting up and effective implementation of infrastructures promoting excellence
in Europe that foster research and will ultimately improve Europe's ability to compete with third coun-
tries;

— suggests that when the members of an ERI are regions or local authorities at least three of them
should belong to different Member States — irrespective of the origin of the other members of the
ERI — in order to ensure that the ERI is transnational;

— urges that EGTCs be specifically considered as an alternative legal instrument for setting up research
infrastructures with a European dimension. Recitals 5 and 9 from the new Council Regulation should
therefore make clearer, more explicit reference to this point;

— highlights the importance of

research
programmes as they are more in touch with the specific local situation in terms of science, technology
and the economy, and therefore know when cooperation on areas of strategic importance is required.

the regional and local authorities in promoting joint

— believes that it is important to maximise regional and local benefits through ‘distributed’ research
infrastructures, and account should be taken of the potential support that setting up a virtual network
of infrastructures in Europe could bring to ERIs.

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Rapporteur: Mr Iñaki AGUIRRE ARIZMENDI (ES/ALDE), General Secretary for External Affairs, Autono-

mous Community of the Basque Country, Spain

Reference documents

Proposal for a Council Regulation on the Community legal framework for a European Research Infrastruc-
ture (ERI)

COM(2008) 467 final — 2008/0148 (CNS)

Communication ‘Towards joint programming in research: working together to tackle common challenges
more effectively’

COM(2008) 468 final

I. POLICY RECOMMENDATIONS

THE COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS

calls on Member States to make coordinated,

5.
joint deci-
sions with the regions on innovation policy, and on the
methods and instruments used to promote this policy, so that
the results achieved also respond to the existing need at local
and regional level;

believes that

1.
the regions and local authorities play a
crucial role in the European Research Area (ERA) in that they
bring this policy to the European people and are in touch with
stakeholders' day-to-day concerns. This Committee therefore
argues that the regions should play a strategic role in initiatives
to strengthen and enlarge the ERA, especially in those which
involve setting up robust research facilities in innovative settings
and cooperating in research;

2.
welcomes the two initiatives which have been put forward
and recognises that they make an important contribution to
deepening and widening the ERA. In its opinion on The ERA:
new perspectives (1)
the Committee emphasised the need to
intensify the process of establishing the ERA as a step towards
making Europe the most dynamic economy in the world;

the basic units

stresses that the regional and local authorities should be
3.
considered as
regional and economic
for
management and that European regional and local authorities
should play a key role in implementing the new Lisbon agenda
to support a more competitive European economy through an
innovation-focussed strategy;

4.
highlights the fact that each of the European regions is
different in terms of their economic fabric and level of maturity
and specialisation. This Committee therefore underlines the need
to bear these differences in mind when linking up the regions to
improve global competitiveness. It must, therefore, be ensured
that certain regions' specific characteristics, such as remoteness,
are not grounds for exclusion when these regions apply to set
up an ERI. Steps should thus be taken to ensure that the outer-
most regions (OR) are able to access this virtual infrastructure
network;

(1) CdR 83/2007 fin.

6.
agrees with the conclusions reached by the Competitive-
ness Council (2) on improving the governance of the ERA by
taking a long-term view of the project, which will be jointly
developed by the Commission and Member States, in collabora-
and the European people. This
tion with stakeholders
Committee therefore supports the intention to involve all stake-
holders, and especially the scientific community, in the govern-
ance of
from the initial drafting stages onwards,
thereby respecting the principle of subsidiarity and forging links
with other policies on education, innovation, and cohesion;

the ERA,

urges the European Commission and Member States to
7.
take the measures necessary to ensure that local and regional
authorities are fully and effectively involved in the governance
of the two initiatives in question;

Community legal
Infrastructure (ERI) — COM(2008) 467 final

framework for a European Research

supports the establishment of a Community legal frame-
8.
work that was requested by Member States in order to facilitate
the setting up and effective implementation of infrastructures
promoting excellence in Europe that foster research and will
ultimately improve Europe's ability to compete with third coun-
tries;

(2) Council of the European Union. Brussels, 30 May 2008. Conclusions of

the Council when the Ljubljana process was launched.

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9.
calls on the Commission to include the regions as full
members alongside Member States, intergovernmental organisa-
tions and third States, when laying down the criteria and
should be
for ERI membership. The regions
requirements
thought of as independent managing units rather than represen-
tatives of a Member State, as they have sufficient resources and
capacity, together with the fully-fledged scientific and technolo-
gical systems required to cope with the shared leadership
process involved in setting up and implementing large infra-
structures promoting excellence;

10.
suggests that when the members of an ERI are regions or
local authorities at least three of them should belong to different
Member States — irrespective of
the other
members of the ERI — in order to ensure that the ERI is trans-
national;

the origin of

11.
welcomes the fact that ERIs can be funded both through
the Framework Programme for Research and the Structural
Funds. In addition, the Committee suggests that other sources of
private and public funding available in Member States should
also be used in a coordinated way;

suggests that mechanisms for coordinating strategy are
12.
set up at European level. These mechanisms would involve rele-
vant stakeholders to ensure that a coherent policy for the ERIs
is effectively implemented, and would deal with important
issues like assessing the initiatives and solving problems on
where to locate the new ERIs;

effect of benefits

agrees with the Commission on the need to promote
13.
initiatives which coordinate stakeholders in order to facilitate
the exchange of information and expertise, and increase the
multiplier
scientific,
academic and technological fabric of the different regional and
local authorities involved. The Committee therefore welcomes
the European Portal on Research Infrastructures recently set up
by the European Commission in collaboration with the Euro-
pean Science Foundation;

economic,

the

for

acknowledges that existing legal

14.
fully
adequate for setting up European research infrastructures, and
recognises the need to develop a framework at European level
to ensure that the infrastructures work more effectively and
barriers to international research are eliminated;

forms are not

social cohesion in different
fields. The Committee therefore
recommends that the ERIs are integrated coherently with the
EGTCs and other existing instruments in order to obtain the
best possible results from all of them;

urges that EGTCs be specifically considered as an alterna-
16.
tive legal instrument for setting up research infrastructures with
a European dimension (3). Recitals 5 and 9 from the new
Council Regulation should therefore make clearer, more explicit
reference to this point;

highlights the current geographical distribution of Euro-
17.
pean research infrastructures which, mainly for historical
reasons, are located in Western Europe and should be planned
so that
they are distributed evenly throughout Europe and,
where possible, among Member States too. This decentralised
distribution of facilities will achieve benefits for the regions and
at the same time meet the need at European level for new infra-
structures, and could be strengthened by a virtual network
connecting all these facilities, providing particular support for
small or medium-sized research infrastructures that could be
important for the development of knowledge in areas of stra-
tegic importance and for economic development and innovation
in the regions and local areas concerned;

18.
agrees with the conclusions reached by the Competitive-
ness Council on 30 May 2008 which call on the Commission
and Member States to support regional and local authorities in
applying for, building and implementing modern research infra-
structures. The Committee suggests:

— ensuring the regional and local authorities are more fully
involved in developing the European Strategy Forum on
Research Infrastructures (ESTRI) roadmap, and, especially, in
prioritising the 35 key projects of European interest already
approved,

— taking into account the importance of the regional and local

authorities and their involvement in ERIs,

— ensuring that ERIs work coherently alongside other legal
level,

forms that exist in Europe at national and regional
such as the European Grouping of Territorial Cooperation,

— facilitating the decentralisation of ERIs through a suitable
legislative framework so that all Member States, regions and
local authorities benefit,

15.
notes that there are other existing instruments at interna-
tional, national and European level which ERIs will complement.
While some of these instruments were set up for a specific
purpose, others — such as the European Grouping of Territorial
Cooperation (EGTC) — have wider objectives: facilitating and
promoting territorial cooperation to strengthen economic and

— ensuring that

local and regional authorities are truly

involved in efficient governance of the ERIs;

(3) See CdR 308/2007 fin point 19.

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highlights the importance of

19.
the regional and local
authorities in developing innovative settings for ERIs, as regional
policy has a significant
impact on attracting scientists and
promoting ERIs as centres for regional development. ERIs thus
have the potential to produce significant socio-economic bene-
fits for the cities and regions in which they are located;

20.
agrees that the European Commission should make the
decisions on the ERIs as, in the view of the Committee, this
procedure would be simpler and shorter than if each decision
on the ERIs had to be taken on a case-by-case basis by the
Council. In order that the decisions made in this process are
taken in a fully transparent and legitimate way, the Committee
suggests that details are provided on the European Commis-
sion's assessment criteria and that a management committee is
established — made up of representatives of the Member States,
and/or, where appropriate, the regions or local and regional
authorities or their associations — which would have a decisive
influence on the decisions taken by the Commission regarding
the ERIs. The Committee also suggests that suitable coordination
mechanisms are set up in Member States to ensure that the
opinion of each Member State in the management committee
reflects the opinion of the regional or local authorities it is
representing;

welcomes the removal of administrative,

21.
legal and tax
barriers in the legal form proposed for the ERIs in this regu-
lation, e.g.
tax exemptions and more flexible procurement
procedures, which in the view of the Committee will help to
simplify the process of setting up large research infrastructures,
ensuring greater efficiency and better results;

is aware that

24.
there is a real need for a programme
containing these elements; the Committee believes however that
implementing this programme ought not to impose any addi-
tional burden on the Member States and the regions and there-
fore suggests that it be supported by the Commission, both in
terms of facilitating agreements and through the commitment
of financial resources, as this is essential to ensure that the
programme produces
satisfactory results. The Committee
the Commission sets up a separate fund to
suggests that
support this initiative;

25.
suggests that, before launching new programmes, both
the EU and Member States should try all possible ways of
achieving synergies between existing transnational policies and
cooperation instruments and establishing the mechanisms
which will ensure that existing coordination programmes are
used to the full, such as the ERAnet programme, the open
method of coordination, and the European Technology Plat-
forms for example;

recognises

the importance of

setting up initiatives
26.
focussed on achieving coordination and cooperation between
the stakeholders involved in European research, development
and innovation, in order to achieve the objective set out in the
Lisbon Strategy of turning Europe into the most competitive
and dynamic economy in the world. This Committee suggests
however that the process of coordination should be organised
from the bottom up, taking into account the principles of vari-
able geometry and subsidiarity.
In this respect, allowing the
regions to participate voluntarily in this process should be seen
as a step towards promoting variable geometry;

Commission Communication Towards Joint Programming
in Research — COM(2008) 468 final

highlights the importance of

22.
the regional and local
authorities in promoting joint research programmes as they are
more in touch with the specific local situation in terms of
science, technology and the economy, and therefore know when
cooperation on areas of strategic importance is required. In fact
some regions in Europe are already successfully leading or are
involved in coordination and collaboration instruments for
research programmes, as in the case of the ERA-NET projects.
The Committee of the Regions stresses that, as well as the
Member States the regional authorities should above all be
involved in promoting cooperation agreements in the frame-
work of joint programming;

27.
agrees with the Commission on the need to tackle the
challenges that go beyond the national sphere jointly, as it is the
regional and local authorities themselves who best understand
the problems and difficulties they have to deal with, and it is
precisely by bringing together resources, people and knowledge
that the likelihood of finding solutions to the most complex
scientific and technological problems is increased;

28.
calls for the priority topics in the framework of joint
programming to be decided in a consensual way, taking into
account the large number of regions with relevant skills and
experience, and carrying out tailored consultation exercises with
the scientific community and all stakeholders involved in each
field;

points out

23.
the need to include in the proposal and
appropriately define the most effective coordination mechan-
isms that will allow the agreements between the different
regional and local authorities that make up Europe to work
smoothly;

suggests that, due to its design and spirit of change, this
29.
programme sets out a pragmatic, flexible and detailed roll-out
programme in which regional priorities for research also play an
important role.

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II. RECOMMENDATIONS FOR AMENDMENTS

Amendment 1

Proposal for a Council Regulation on the Community legal framework for a European Research
Infrastructure (ERI), Recital (6)

Text proposed by the Commission

CoR Amendment

(…) Such research infrastructures may be ‘single-sited’ or
‘distributed’ (an organised network of resources).

(an organised network of

(…) Such research infrastructures may be ‘single-sited’ or
‘distributed’
is
important to maximise regional and local benefits through
‘distributed’ research infrastructures, and account should be
taken of the potential support that setting up a virtual
network of infrastructures in Europe could bring to ERIs.

resources).

It

Reason

Setting up ‘distributed’ research infrastructures would not only yield benefits for the regions and local autho-
rities but would also meet the existing need in Europe to develop new infrastructures. The infrastructures
would be strengthened by establishing a virtual network linking up all the facilities.

Amendment 2

Proposal for a Council Regulation on the Community legal framework for a European Research
Infrastructure (ERI), Article 3(c)

Text proposed by the Commission

CoR Amendment

research

European

community,

The
of
researchers from Member States and from countries asso-
ciated to the Community research, technological develop-
ment and demonstration programmes can effectively have
access to it; and

composed

research

European

community,

of
The
researchers from Member States,
local
authorities, and from countries associated to the Com-
munity research, technological development and demon-
stration programmes can effectively have access to it; and

the regional or

composed

Reason

The regions and local authorities play a crucial role in the ERA. They should, therefore, participate actively
in all the relevant initiatives especially those connected with the establishment of robust research institutions,
innovative environments and research-related cooperation activities.

Amendment 3

Proposal for a Council Regulation on the Community legal framework for a European Research
Infrastructure (ERI), Article 4(1)(c)

Text proposed by the Commission

CoR Amendment

a technical and scientific description of the research infra-
structure to be established and operated by the ERI, addres-
sing in particular the requirements set out in Article 3.

a technical and scientific description of the research infra-
structure to be established and operated by the ERI,
together with an account of the socio-economic effects the
ERI will have at regional level, addressing in particular the
requirements set out in Article 3;

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Reason

It is important to emphasise the advantages and benefits that implementing a research infrastructure will
bring at local and regional level, not only in scientific and technological terms but for the whole region.

Amendment 4

Proposal for a Council Regulation on the Community legal framework for a European Research
Infrastructure (ERI), Article 6

Text proposed by the Commission

CoR Amendment

(…)

(…)

2.
An ERI shall have in each Member State the most
extensive legal capacity accorded to legal entities under the
law of that Member State. It may,
in particular, acquire,
own and dispose of movable, immovable and intellectual
property, conclude contracts and be a party to legal
proceedings.

2.
An ERI shall have in each Member State or region the
most extensive legal capacity accorded to legal entities
under the law of that Member State territory. It may, in par-
ticular, acquire, own and dispose of movable, immovable
and intellectual property, conclude contracts and be a party
to legal proceedings.

(…)

(…)

4. Member States shall take all possible measures to
accord the ERI the most extensive exemption from taxes
further to those referred to in paragraph 3, in conformity
with State aid rules.

4. Member States and regions shall
take all possible
measures to accord the ERI the most extensive exemption
from taxes further to those referred to in paragraph 3, in
conformity with State aid rules.

Reason

See reason for amendment 2.

Amendment 5

Proposal for a Council Regulation on the Community legal framework for a European Research
Infrastructure (ERI), Article 7(1)

Text proposed by the Commission

CoR Amendment

An ERI shall have a statutory seat, which shall be located
on the territory of a member which shall be a Member
State or a country associated to a Community research,
technological development and demonstration programme.

An ERI shall have a statutory seat, which shall be located
on the territory of a member which shall be a Member
State, region or a country associated to a Community
research,
technological development and demonstration
programme.

Reason

See reason for amendment 2.

Amendment 6

Proposal for a Council Regulation on the Community legal framework for a European Research
Infrastructure (ERI), Article 8

Text proposed by the Commission

CoR Amendment

The following entities may become members of an

1.
ERI:

1.
ERI:

The following entities may become members of an

(a) Member States
(b) third countries
(c) inter-governmental organisations.

(a) Member States
(b) regional or local authorities
(c) third countries
(d) inter-governmental organisations.

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Text proposed by the Commission

CoR Amendment

2.
An ERI must at all times have at least three Member
States as members. Further Member States may join as
members at any time on fair and reasonable terms specified
in the Statutes.

2.
An ERI must at all times have at least three Member
States as members, or a minimum of three regional or local
authorities that belong to different Member States. Further
Member States may join as members at any time on fair
and reasonable terms specified in the Statutes.

3. Member States shall jointly hold the majority of the
voting rights in the assembly of members referred to in
Article 12(a).

4.
Any Member State or third country may be repre-
sented by one or more public entities, including regions, or
private entities with a public-service mission as regards the
exercise of specified rights and the discharge of specified
obligations as a member of the ERI.

(…)

Reason

See reason for amendment 2.

3. Member States,
jointly hold the majority of
assembly of members referred to in Article 12(a).

shall
local authorities
the voting rights in the

regions or

4.
Any Member State, region or local authority or third
country may be represented by one or more public entities,
including regionsal or local authorities, or private entities
with a public-service mission as regards the exercise of
specified rights and the discharge of specified obligations as
a member of the ERI.

(…)

Proposal for a Council Regulation on the Community legal framework for a European Research
Infrastructure (ERI), Article 9

Amendment 7

Text proposed by the Commission

CoR Amendment

The Statutes shall contain at least the following:

The Statutes shall contain at least the following:

(…)

(…)

(h) basic principles covering:

(h) basic principles covering:

(i) … (viii)

(i) … (viii)

(ix) policy for communication with local and regional
public authorities, stakeholders and members of
the public in the area where the ERI will be set
up;

Reason

It is important to emphasise that part of the role of ERIs is to disseminate and optimise the results of the
activities carried out by the scientific community.

Amendment 8

Proposal for a Council Regulation on the Community legal framework for a European Research
Infrastructure (ERI), Article 18(2)

Text proposed by the Commission

CoR Amendment

An ERI and the Member States concerned shall inform the
Commission of any circumstances which threaten to
seriously jeopardise the achievement of the task of the ERI.

An ERI, the regional or local authorities and the Member
States concerned shall
inform the Commission of any
circumstances which threaten to seriously jeopardise the
achievement of the task of the ERI.

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Reason

See reason for amendment 2.

Amendment 9

Proposal for a Council Regulation on the Community legal framework for a European Research
Infrastructure (ERI), Article 19

Text proposed by the Commission

CoR Amendment

Member States shall make such provisions as are appro-
priate to ensure the effective application of this Regulation.

Member States and the regional or local authorities shall
make such provisions as are appropriate to ensure the effec-
tive application of this Regulation.

Reason

See reason for amendment 2.

Amendment 10

Proposal for a Council Regulation on the Community legal framework for a European Research
Infrastructure (ERI), Article 21

Text proposed by the Commission

CoR Amendment

The Commission shall be assisted by an advisory

1.
committee.

2. Where reference is made to this Article, Articles 3
and 7 of Decision 1999/468/EC shall apply.

1.
The Commission shall be assisted by an advisory
managing committee made up of representatives of all the
Member States, and/or regional authorities where relevant.

2. When reference is made to this Article, Articles 3
and 7 Articles 4 and 7 of Decision 1999/468/EC shall
apply.

Reason

Having a managing committee and procedure instead of an advisory committee will ensure that, if the Euro-
pean Commission's decision on an application to set up an ERI is not in line with the opinion of the
Committee, the Commission will have to communicate this to the Council. The Council could then take a
different decision by qualified majority. The managing committee would be made up of representatives of all
Member States and/or regional authorities where relevant.

Brussels, 26 November 2008.

The President

of the Committee of the Regions

Luc VAN DEN BRANDE