Europe’s €80 billion will support research
pharmafile | December 2, 2011 | News story | Research and Development, Sales and Marketing | European Commission
The European Commission has created a new €80 billion budget in an effort to encourage research and innovation across the continent.
The deal aims to further encourage public-private partnerships between academia and leading industries – including pharma – in Europe.
The Horizon 2020 programme will run from 2014 to 2020 with an €80 billion budget, which will be split into three key areas. This includes a dedicated science budget of €24.6 billion that will provide a boost to research in Europe, and an increase in funding of 77% for the European Research Council.
There will also a €17.9 billion fund to strengthen industrial leadership in innovation, which includes major investment in key technologies, greater access to capital and support for smaller firms.
A sum of €31.7 billion will used to address areas such as climate change, making renewable energy more affordable, and dealing with the challenge of an ageing population.
This represents a new way of funding these programmes by simplifying the funding routes into one core budget.
The new fund unites money that was previously split across three separate budgets, and is aimed at streamlining the funding process.
Máire Geoghegan-Quinn, commissioner for research, innovation and science at the EC, said: “I’ve said many times that we have an ‘innovation emergency’ in Europe, and Horizon 2020 is our response to that emergency.
“We need a new vision for European research and innovation in a dramatically changed economic environment,” she added.
This forms part of the Innovation Union, a recent initiative aimed at enhancing Europe’s global competitiveness. Horizon 2020 is meant to ‘bridge the gap’ between research and the market by helping innovative enterprise to develop breakthroughs into viable products.
The Commission says a market-driven approach would include creating partnerships with the private sector and Member States to bring together the resources needed.
EFPIA supports new budget
Europe’s pharma group EFPIA welcomed the new direction. Richard Bergström, director general of EFPIA, said: “The European Commission should be commended for their intention to further develop public-private partnerships.
“There is shared understanding that private companies and public bodies must collaborate more, and to think about new business models which allow us to work much more quickly to meet unmet needs.
“EFPIA confirms industry interest in continuing public private collaborations which will enable game changing biopharmaceutical research projects, that address scientific and technological bottlenecks in areas with grand societal challenges, such as antimicrobial resistance.”
Member States of the European Union will now negotiate the budget during the European Parliament.
Ben Adams
Related Content
European Commission approves HIV prevention injection
The European Commission (EC) has granted marketing authorisation for Gilead Science’s Yeytuo (lenacapavir), the first …
Sanofi’s Sarclisa gains EU approval for multiple myeloma treatment
Sanofi has received approval from the European Commission for the use of Sarclisa (isatuximab) in …
Biocon Biologics gains EU approval for bone health therapies
Biocon Biologics has announced that the European Commission has granted marketing authorisation for its denosumab …
