Source: EURLEX
Language: en
Format: md

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| ROADMAP | |
| Roadmaps aim to inform citizens and stakeholders about the Commission's work in order to allow them to provide feedback and to participate effectively in future consultation activities. Citizens and stakeholders are in particular invited to provide views on the Commission's understanding of the problem and possible solutions and to make available any relevant information that they may have. | |
| Title of the initiative | Communication on the future of research and innovation and the European Research Area |
| Lead DG – responsible unit | DG Research and Innovation- Units A1, G1 |
| Likely Type of initiative | Commission communication |
| Indicative Planning | Q3 2020 |
| Additional Information | https://ec.europa.eu/info/research-and-innovation/strategy/era\_en#eraprogress |
| This Roadmap is provided for information purposes only and its content might change. It does not prejudge the final decision of the Commission on whether this initiative will be pursued or on its final content. All elements of the initiative described by the Roadmap, including its timing, are subject to change.  Tip: The Roadmap will be published by the SG on the Commission's web site and citizens and stakeholders will be able to provide feedback for a period of 4 weeks. The Roadmap should be considered as an information tool addressed to the public and therefore it should be written in non-technical language, avoiding acronyms, jargon and detailed technical or legal analysis. It should be finalised at the earliest stages of the preparatory process so that best use can be made of feedback from stakeholders.  Please note that the length limits shown for the various sections are indicative but it is essential that the author DG keeps to an overall maximum of 3 to 4 pages in order to keep the text readable for the public. | |

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| A. Context, Problem definition and Subsidiarity Check |
| Context [max 10 lines] |
| The European Research Area (ERA) aims to strengthen the foundations, quality and impact of the research and innovation system in the EU and in Member States. Research and innovation must play a key role enabling in a systemic manner the ecological and digital transitions Europe has to cope with their economic and social impacts. The Communication may also need to address coordination of research related to public health, in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.  It therefore contributes to the achievement of the Commission’s headline ambitions.  In its conclusions on ERA governance of November 2018, the Competitiveness Council invited the Commission to produce a new ERA communication by mid-2020. Furthermore, in Commissioner Gabriel’s mission letter, President von der Leyen explicitly requested her “to work with Member States to build a true European Research Area in which we pull together all national and European efforts”. . The Communication will therefore contribute to providing the conditions and setting the direction for Member States and the Union to the delivery on their research, innovation and investment agendas. The Communication is included in the Commission’s Work Programme (Annex I “a Europe Fit for the Digital Age) and it follows the Policy Objective ‘Towards a European Research Area’. |
| Problem the initiative aims to tackle [max 25 lines] |
| Europe’s ambition is to continue increasing the well-being and prosperity of all its citizens, by turning the imperative of sustainable development into new economic and social opportunities while staying well within planetary boundaries. In the face of fast and often disruptive technological change, mounting resource scarcity and societal and territorial inequalities, only countries that shape and ride the new technological opportunities will lead the future. Europe must deliver on the sustainability agenda and address issues such as the geography of discontent, the future of work, polarisation of the labour market (robotics, AI and automation are rapidly redefining jobs) or the risks related to emerging technologies. Research and innovation must play a key role enabling in a systemic manner the ecological, social and economic transitions Europe has to face. Yet, in recent years, we have seen progress towards ERA slowing down for a number of different reasons, such as ERA relying on non-binding implementation instruments (eg. ERA-roadmaps), or the successive enlargements that have significantly diversified the R&I landscape and created new needs (such as widening participation). Also, the context in which we operate has changed dramatically: the growing importance of digitalisation, the changes in the geopolitical landscape, the decreased trust in experts and science, the urgency of climate change action, triggering the adoption by the new Commission of a new paradigm in its strategic thinking: the Green Deal as our economic strategy for the future.    ·Questions/issues to consider.  ·What is the problem that this initiative aims to tackle? How big is the problem? Who is affected by it?   ·Is the initiative driven by a newly arising political opportunity (which one) rather than a specific problem?  ·Is the initiative part of the Regulatory Fitness Programme (REFIT)?  ·Do implementation problems exist based on complaints and infringement proceedings?  ·What are the causes ("drivers") of the problem and their relative importance?  ·How is the problem likely to evolve with no new EU intervention? Will the nature of the problem change as society makes greater use of the internet, social media and ICT technologies?  Background / Tips  ·It is impossible to design effective policy options without a good understanding of the problem and the underlying reasons ("drivers") why the problem has occurred.  ·Problem drivers can usually be categorised as market failures (where the market does not deliver an efficient outcome); regulatory failures (where existing legislation has failed to solve the problem); where equity considerations differ from the economically efficient outcome; or where behaviour is biased and individuals do not act in their own best-interest.  ·See Tool #14 on 'How to analyse problems'; this provides more information and examples on the different types of market failure, regulatory failures etc. |
| Basis for EU intervention (legal basis and subsidiarity check) [max 10 lines] |
| Article 179 TFEU establishes the objective for the Union of achieving a European Research Area. The proposed initiative will help combine EU and national research and innovation investment instruments with smarter and more responsive EU regulation; it will also help to promote national reforms to support the transition of the economy, society, and planet into a sustainable future. Existing evidence shows that sustainable agendas have become a priority for many countries. Action at EU level will prove to be crucial in supporting the development of coherent national agendas providing added value in realising critical mass and efficient allocation of resources.  ·Indicate the legal basis in the Treaty giving the EU the right to act.  ·Is the initiative in an area of exclusive or shared competence? For a possible action at EU level, how is the subsidiarity principle taken into account and respected?  Background / Tips  ·The Union should only act where the principle of subsidiarity is respected. The principle does not apply in areas of exclusive competence (e.g. commercial policy). In such cases, the following standard formulation should be used "The initiative falls under the exclusive competence of the EU according to Article xx of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU). Therefore, the subsidiarity principle does not apply".  ·If the initiative falls under shared competence, it must fulfil the Necessity and EU-added value tests of subsidiarity:  ·Necessity check: Explain why the problem cannot be solved by the Member States acting alone. What is the EU-dimension of the problem? Are there cross-border effects (e.g. pollution) or obstacles to the free movement of persons, goods, services and capital?  ·EU added value: Can the identified problems be solved more efficiently/effectively/cheaply at EU level?  ·General and vague statements should be avoided (e.g. "there is a risk of market fragmentation"). Quantified information should be provided wherever possible (e.g. "Up to half of observed air pollution in urban areas comes from sources in other Member States"; the costs of air pollution control are reduced if the Member States acts together as pollution abatement can be optimised and focused where it delivers the greatest benefit";)  ·See Tool #5 on 'Legal basis, subsidiarity and proportionality'. |
| B. What does the initiative aim to achieve and how [max 25 lines] |
| The initiative aims to revitalise the European Research Area by providing it with a new vision, consisting in a transformative R&I policy that shapes technological and societal change to deliver a sustainable European society. It will establish clear objectives for the ERA and include specific actions to be carried out at EU level but also together with the Member States.    Questions/issues to consider:  ·What will this initiative aim to achieve?   ·What types of actions are envisaged? Present briefly the possible options (if there are).   ·For any possible action at EU level describe how would proportionality be taken into account  Tips  ·See Tool #16 on 'How to set objectives'; Tool #17 on 'How to identify policy options'; and Tool #18 on    'The choice of policy instruments'. |
| C. Better regulation |
| Consultation of citizens and stakeholders [max 10 lines] |
| N/A, Broad policy Communication    Questions/issues to consider:  ·This section should be a summary of the (draft) consultation strategy.  oPlease start with a short paragraph on the aim of the consultation, followed by a paragraph on the (main) stakeholders identified.  oThen please use bullet points to list the planned consultation activities, with an emphasis on, if applicable, the public consultation (when will it roughly be launched; that it will run for a minimum of 12 weeks [state the actual duration if already known)]; in which languages will the questionnaire be available; stress that replies can be made in any of the 24 official EU languages; that it can be accessed via the Commission's central public consultations page and via…[indicate if you will have a DG consultation website)).  oFinish with a paragraph providing information on how you intend to promote the consultation(s) and that the synopsis report, a summary of all consultation activities' results, will be published on the consultation page.  ·If you intend to target the SME communities specifically, please describe how you intend to do it (e. g. via a SME panel)  Tips  ·See Tool #53 on 'Stakeholder consultation strategy' |
| Evidence base and data collection [max 10 lines] |
| The Communication is a policy document and, as such, does not require an impact assessment. It will be accompanied by a staff working document that provides quantitative and qualitative information, both on the ERA and its accomplishments and shortcomings over the past 20 years, and on the objectives proposed to achieve the new transformative vision for ERA.    Questions/issues to consider  ·Please explain what evidence-base is available and/or will be gathered to underpin the initiative.  ·Please describe any recently completed evaluations/fitness checks or related studies which will inform the initiative and provide references and hypertext links.  ·In particular, explain why no impact assessment is being prepared to support this initiative. In doing so refer to the formal IA criteria: i.e. no significant impacts are expected, no discretion on policy choices. If other reasons, please elaborate on them as well.  Background / Tips  ·Impact Assessments are generally required for all but the most trivial legislative proposals. They are required for all initiatives likely to have significant economic, environmental and/or social impacts and where the Commission has a choice over the policy content of the initiative. This covers legislative proposals, Communications, White papers, Recommendations, delegated acts, implementing acts, etc.  ·Where the Commission has no discretion on the policy content, an impact assessment is not appropriate but information on the impacts can still be presented in a staff working document or explanatory memorandum.  ·Communications which set out a general policy approach and do not specify the means and specific policy content may not require an impact assessment but follow-up actions probably do.  ·Where an agency is involved in the preparation of a delegated act/implementing act and follows an impact assessment- like process, then there will be no need to prepare a formal impact assessment if the quality is good and if the Commission does not deviate from the advice/recommendations of the Agency.  ·The reasons why no impact assessment is prepared should also be explained in the explanatory memorandum which accompanies legislative proposals (and delegated acts).   ·See Tool #9 on 'When is an IA necessary?' |

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