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 27 July 2008
Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills (DIUS)
 
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EU Innovation

Innovation, the development and successful exploitation of new ideas, is central to better jobs, economic growth and prosperity.  Europe cannot compete on the basis of low value-added and low skills.  Success in the future will come from businesses increasing the added-value of their products, processes and services.  Innovation plays a critically important role in Europe's ability to respond effectively to the challenges and opportunities of the global economy as well as to other major challenges, such as climate change. All forms of innovation, including non‑technological must be taken into account.   

Europe has much high quality research and a reputation for outstanding scientific and technological discovery but this often fails to be translated into new or better products or services in the market.   Europe also lags behind key competitors in the share of GDP devoted to R&D, both from public funds but more importantly from the private sector.   The EU recognises this and has in place building blocks through the Lisbon strategy.  These aim at improving access to financing in support of innovation, at creating an innovation friendly regulatory environment and demand for innovation as well as reinforcing the activities of institutions relevant for innovation, including the links between research institutions and industry. 

News

Report on the UK's research and innovation system - in January 2007, a team of senior officials from five EU member states visited London and interviewed a wide selection of people from business, academia, government and research organisations on research and innovation issues. This event was undertaken in the framework of the EU’s “open method of coordination”, whereby member states cooperate voluntarily in policy areas related to the Lisbon growth and jobs agenda, with a view to mutual learning/following best practice. The final report is available to view by clicking here.

The Europe innovation portal is http://www.europe-innova.org/index.jsp

The nine strategic EU priorities for innovation are: 

 

  • An effective IPR framework
  • Creating a pro‑active standard‑setting policy
  • Making public procurement work for innovation
  • Launching Joint Technology Initiatives
  • Boosting innovation and growth in lead markets
  • Enhancing closer co‑operation between higher education, research and business
  • Helping innovation in regions
  • Developing a policy approach to innovation in services and to non‑technological innovation; and
  • Risk capital markets

In line with the Lisbon Agenda, the EU has set an ambitious target of raising investment in R&D to 3% of GDP by 2010 (of which two thirds from the private sector).  Annual progress on the EU’s comparative innovation performance is published in the European Innovation Scoreboard.  The latest report can be found at  http://www.proinno-europe.eu/

The R&D Framework Programme is the EU’s main instrument to fund research, technology and innovation.  It supports collaborative research, scientific infrastructure and mobility of researchers. The Seventh Framework Programme (FP7) http://ec.europa.eu/research/fp7/documents_en.html

promotes excellence in basic research and enhance competitiveness by being attuned to business needs for industrial research and by encouraging knowledge transfer.

Other developments include a new State aid Framework for research, development and innovation:    http://ec.europa.eu/comm/competition/state_aid/legislation/horizontal.html

This creates new allowable categories of aid for high-tech start up companies, innovation and advisory services for SMEs, process and organisational innovation and facilities for technology clusters.   

Negotiations for the Commission proposal to establish a European Institute for Innovation and Technology (EIT) were formally completed in March 2008.

The EIT is proposed as a new way of strengthening Europe’s capacity to innovate and to promote more effective knowledge transfer by integrating the three branches of the knowledge triangle—education, business and research. It will develop a series of autonomous knowledge and innovation communities (KICs). The KICs would be selected on a competitive basis to bolster Europe’s capacity to innovate in a number of targeted areas of key economic or societal interest.

Further information on the EIT can be found at:

European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT)PDF document (57KB)

 

DG Enterprise is the European Commission’s Directorate General responsible for coordinating and development of EU innovation policy.  The website is: http://ec.europa.eu/enterprise/index_en.htm

Contacts:  Chris North, Tel  0203 300 8663  chris.north@dius.gsi.gov.uk  or Caroline Jacobs caroline.jacobs@dius.gsi.gov.uk

 

 

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