European spending on research and technology will fall short of the European Commission’s original hopes after the European Council and Parliament hammered out a compromise €48 billion ($58 billion) budget deal, writes Aimée Turner.
In its proposal for the European Union’s seventh framework programme for science and research (FP7) within the 25 member states, the EC last April had pitched for €73 billion for 2007-13.
The FP – Europe’s chief instrument for research funding – is proposed by the EC and adopted by the Council and the European Parliament in a co-decision procedure. The parliament and the Austrian presidency have now reached a deal, with an extra €300 million allocated to FP7, bringing the budget to just over €48 billion. The extra €300 million follows a December decision by Council leaders to cut the EU’s overall budget for the period, signalling in turn that research spending would fall short of the doubling of the FP7 budget originally proposed.
The AeroSpace and Defence Industries Association of Europe has fought against funding cuts. Secretary general François Gayet says it is “regrettable it was left far from the initial proposal to double the budget”.
While aeronautics and space were combined in FP6, space is now linked to security for FP7 and aeronautics has been moved to the transport sector. FP7 is to be launched at the end of 2006.
- Airbus representatives visited NASA’s Langley Research Center in Virgina in April, viewing laboratories for plasma spray processing, structures and materials and thermal structures, and the combined loads test system and landing and impact research facilities.
Source: Flight International
