The Pot Holes in the Road Toward a Functional European Research Council Remain. (February 9, 2006)

     In January 2002 TFW reported, "The concept of a European Research Area (ERA) has been bandied about in various popular and scientific publications for several years... there is a strong move toward consolidation for the EU to be able to compete collectively on a par with the big players so that its people can maintain/improve their living standards. To this end research including basic research as well as development are of fundamental importance. United they prosper, divided they will wane."

By December 2005 matters has inched forward to the point that it could be reported that the European Research Council (ERC), to be launched in 2007, will be the first Europe-wide granting agency for basic research. On 5 December, its Scientific Council announced the election of molecular biologist Fotis Kafatos as chairman."

Kafatos said at the time that It would not be worth establishing the ERC if it were poorly endowed — the funding has to be sufficient for it to work properly and make a difference. Personally, I think the absolute minimum would be €1 billion per year.

Now Nature reports, "A power struggle between the European Parliament and member states of the European Union (EU) threatens to delay the start date of the EU's next funding programme for research — and that of its new flagship funding agency, the European Research Council (ERC).

"In December, the EU's 25 heads of government agreed a total budget for 2007–13, including a 75% increase in research spending by 2013. If the money rises steadily over that period, the budget for the seventh EU Research Framework Programme (FP7) will be roughly €50 billion. That's €20 billion less than originally proposed by the European Commission, which aimed to double research spending by 2013."

The EU parliament by a vote of 541 to 56 has rejected the budget proposal and its now back back to the memeber governments for renegotiation, who are unlikely to introduce significant increases. That leaves it up to the EC to deliver a revised proposal for FP7.  However, infighting fighting over how to cope with the reduced budget is currently leaving matters in limbo.

Janez Potonik, the EU's research commissioner, told an EU parliament committee on January 26. "If we are to deliver a Framework programme in time for 2007...we must ensure that there are no delays on either side." But that minimum figure of €1 billion per year for an effective ERC remains in the air, and Nature reports, "Peter Dröll, head of Potonik's staff, says FP7 could make its schedule, provided the EU budget is approved by April. But that's far from certain. 'I reckon we'll need at least until the summer break,' says Angelika Niebler, a Christian democrat MEP who acts as rapporteur for the ERC."

With this sort of mucking about who needs terrorists.