On July 19, the European Commissioner for Research Innovation and Science announced the decision to fund European research and innovation in 2011, totaling over EUR 64 billion. It is the EU’s largest research investment plan to date and a vital part of the “Europe 2020 strategy.” It is a prelude to the, “Innovation Alliance” which will be launched in the fall of this year.

 

The European Union currently funds the largest single research programme on the planet – the Seventh Framework Programme - with a budget of more than EUR 53 billion for the period 2007-2013, among which European research and innovation in 2011 totals over EUR 6.4 billion, with an increase of 12% when compared with EUR 5.3 billion in 2010 and an increase of 30% when compared with EUR 4.9 billion in 2009.

 

The European Commissioner for Research Innovation and Science, Máire Geoghegan-Quinn, said that “the scale of funding for 2011 alone will give a significant boost to jobs and economic growth in cutting-edge sectors across the European Union at a time when many countries are struggling to cope with the fallout from the world-wide economic crisis.” Adopting the Europe 2020 strategy, Europe’s political leaders have put research and innovation at the top of the European political agenda, making it the cornerstone of plans for investment in sustainable growth and jobs.

 

The sheer scale of funding to be announced on 19 July shows that the EU is backing up this plan with hard cash and is committed to creating jobs and sustainable economic growth and to finding answers for tomorrow’s problems today.