EU POLICY

° The first of the four priority areas of the Irish Presidency (see below) was fulfilled when the EU welcomed ten new Member States  on 1^st May.  Two days later the first plenary session of the enlarged European Parliament was held.  Outgoing Parliament President is Irish MEP Pat Cox welcomed the existing 626 Members and 162 new Members from the 10 new Member States.  European elections will be held in June, following which a new Parliament (2004-9) will be in place from 20^th July 2004.

Irish Presidency: http://www.eu2004.ie

Appointment of Members of the European Commission 

Following a vote of approval by the European Parliament, the Representatives of the Governments of the Member States of the European Communities, by common accord with the President of the Commission, appointed Members of the European Commission for the period from 1 May 2004 to 31 October 2004:

The Representatives of the Governments of the Member States of the European Communities also appointed as members of the Commission:

Mr Joaquín ALMUNIA AMANN, to replace Mr Pedro SOLBES (Spain),
Mr Jacques BARROT, to replace Mr Michel BARNIER (France), and
Mr Stavros DIMAS, to replace Ms Anna DIAMANTOPOULOU (Greece),
following their resignations and for the remainder of their term of office, i.e. until 31 October 2004.

Internet: http://ue.eu.int/

RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT

° Commissioner Busquin outlines main guidelines of the future of EU research: The Commissioner presented guidelines to the Competitiveness Council of Ministers, paving the way for publication of a Commission Communication on this subject at the beginning of June. In the Dutch Presidency, the Communication and its blueprint for the future of EU research is to be addressed at a workshop in the Netherlands on July 2-3.  Commissioner Busquin has also expressed his hope that a European Research Council (ERC) for fundamental research would be agreed during the Dutch Presidency, which will run from July to December 2004.

° Open and future calls for proposals for FP6 – updated list: Page link

° Nanotechnology news: 1.Commission adopts Communication 'towards a European Strategy for nanotechnology'.  It identifies five areas: R&D; infrastructure; education and training; innovation; and the societal dimension. Market potential for this technology is estimated as billions of euro by 2010. Nanoscience and nanotechnologies are new approaches to R&D, working on matter at the level of atoms and molecules. Within a few years applications are expected to impact on all technological sectors. Research in nanotechnologies will lead to new development in healthcare, food and environmental research, information technology, security, new materials and energy production and storage. http://www.cordis.lu/nanotechnology/src/ communication.htm

2. Reinsurance company expresses concern over nanotechnology: A major reinsurance company has advised insurance companies that they may need to reconsider covering products manufactured using nanotechnology until more is known about any possible side-effects of the technology.  Some research suggests a real health threat from nanotechnology. US researchers recently found that nanoparticles are able to cause brain damage in fish. Swiss Re points out that in order to know the risks for sure, studies would have to be carried out on human beings, which is unrealistic. A concern for many insurance companies could be that claims such as those related to asbestos exposure could be repeated.  For further details please refer to: http://www.swissre.com

3. In May a German Federal Ministry for Education and Research information campaign, 'nanoTruck: a journey to the nanocosmos - a world of minute proportions' was displayed in Brussels. Exhibits provided examples of nanomaterials, nanobiotechnology, nanoanalytics, nanochemistry and nanofabrication, along with information on potential uses and risks. In Germany the truck attracted over 35,000 visitors in 29 locations in 3 months. A total of 95 stopovers are planned before end 2004. http://www.nanotruck.net and http://www.cordis.lu/nanotechnology

° Innovation and network building proposal to be presented at OECD (Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development) ministerial conference on small businesses, entrepreneurship and globalisation (Istanbul 3- 5 June).  A 'Regional emerging markets technology transfer network' (REMTECH) initiative  would involve SMEs. Separate networks would bring together multiple stakeholders from specific industrial sectors. Integrated into each would be existing regional clusters, incubators and technology transfer centres, research and innovation centres, university researchers and national public authorities. The aim is to avoid duplication, improve  industrial competitiveness and productivity of regional emerging markets through technology transfer and foster the generation of global markets through exchange of practice. http://www.oecd-istanbul.sme2004.org

° National Consultation on FP7: The UK government has become one of the first to initiate a consultation process to prepare its position on the Seventh Framework Programme (FP7), due to begin in 2006.  Their consultation document favours an increase in research funding – taking money from existing areas of EU expenditure rather than an enlarged EU budget.  Following suggestions that the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre (JRC) could be abolished or receive significantly reducing direct funding to be routed instead through customer DGs in the European Commission, the UK document supports the JRC’s autonomous role.   Consultation will close on 26 July. A position paper on FP7 will be published in early autumn 2004. http://www.ost.gov.uk/ostinternational/f p7

° New FP6 Major Projects Library: An overview of over 150 Integrated Projects (IPs) and Networks of Excellence (NoEs) listed by thematic priority may be found on: Page link .  Please see also: http://europa.eu.int/comm/dgs/research/i ndex_en.html

FP6 Model Contracts: Mono contractor, Core Contract, Cooperation Grant (links)

core contract - Mono contractor ( 38 kB) ;core contract ;Grant for cooperation with Third Countries

Table of special clauses 

INFORMATION and COMMUNICATIONS TECHNOLOGY (ICT)

° Commission Communication: eEurope 2005 Action Plan: The Communication  has retained eEurope 2005 targets but has revised the original Action Plan following the mid-term review.  The emphasis is still on exchange of good practice, benchmarking and open co-ordination. Further action is planned in relation to target areas: e-government, e-health and e-learning to enhance interoperability and increase pan-European co-operation.  Altogether fifteen actions are set out in the Communication. Full text:   English    The related Commission Communication on broadband may be found on: http://europa.eu.int/information_society/eeurope/2005/all_about/broadband/index_en.htm#National

° Commission calls for Ideas for IST 2004 Conference Workshops and Exhibits: The Commission call closed on 17^th May for the event which will be held in The Hague on 15^th-17^th November.  In August a separate call for Networking Sessions will be opened: http://europa.eu.int/information_society /istevent/2004/index_en.htm

EDUCATION, TRAINING AND PROFESSIONAL RECOGNITION: 

° EU Education Ministers adopt Resolution recognising the importance of guidance activities in the context of lifelong learning.  Political agreement was also achieved at the meeting on the 'Europass' proposal.  This consolidates a number of documents, like the European CV, into a single portfolio that will improve transparency and mutual recognition of qualifications, leading to enhanced mobility within Europe. Council Conclusions on Quality Assurance in Vocational Education and Training and Common European Principles for the Identification and Validation of Informal and Non-formal Learning were also adopted. 

ENVIRONMENT:

° Environmental Liability Directive published in EU Official Journal: Directive 2004/35/CE of the European Parliament and of the Council of 21 April 2004 on environmental liability with regard to the prevention and remedying of environmental damage (Official Journal (OJ) L143/56 30.4.2004). Full text

° European Environment Agency critiques Hollywood blockbuster: Whilst condemning Hollywood’s new disaster movie “The Day After Tomorrow” as being unrealistic, scientists acknowledge that a Gulf Stream switch-off is conceivable. The current scientific consensus (as expressed by the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate change, IPCC is that global warming may result in a weakening of the Gulf Stream, by about 20% by around 2050, but is unlikely to shut it down completely. To see how the Gulf Stream works and to review current research an extensive reading list is proposed:

Climate Research Centre, The thermohaline circulation. http://www.cru.uea.ac.uk/cru/info/thc/ ;   Hadley Centre (2004), “Global warming - will we freeze? What the experts are really saying”. http://www.met-office.gov.uk/corporate/p ressoffice/2004/pr20040430a.html; Gagosian, Robert B. (2003), “Abrupt Climate Change: Should We Be Worried?”  Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. Prepared for a panel on abrupt climate change at the World Economic Forum Davos, Switzerland. Jan. 27, 2003 http://www.whoi.edu/institutes/occi/curr enttopics/climatechange_wef.html ;  German Environment Ministry, Konsequente Klimaschutzpolitik kann Klimakatastrophen verhindern http://www.bmu.de/de/1024/js/presse/2004 /pm142/main.htm;Hulme, Mike (2003), “Abrupt Climate Change: Can Society Cope?” Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research 30 March 2003. http://www.tyndall.ac.uk/publications/working_papers/wp30.pdf ;IPCC (2001), 3rd Assessment Report - Climate Change 2001 http://www.ipcc.ch/ ;EEA (2003), Europe's environment: the third assessment, Environmental assessment report No 10, chapter on climate change http://reports.eea.eu.int/environmental_ assessment_report_2003_10/Chapter3 ;EEA (2004), Mapping the impacts of recent natural disasters and technological accidents in Europe, Environmental issue report No 35. http://reports.eea.eu.int/environmental_ issue_report_2004_35/en ;EEA (2004), Arctic Environment: European perspectives (due shortly); U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change, Brief background information http://unfccc.int/ http://unfccc.int/press/dossiers/index.h tml

° France’s move to apply ‘precautionary principle’ causes controversy: French President Jacques Chirac has proposed that France amend its Constitution to give environmental issues the same importance as human, economic and social rights, a move supported by French Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin who explained “It is very important that France shows itself to be the conscience of the planet”. Criticism of the proposal stems from concern over an article stating that if an action poses a “serious and irreversible threat” to the environment, the government is free to act to stop it.  Scientists believe that this precautionary principle is ill-defined and could lead to complicated legal disputes. The charter is being debated – French Parliament acceptance requires a national referendum or a vote by both Houses of Parliament.

° New source of marine pollution - first survey of plastic fragments in oceans: a team of UK researchers has carried out the first ever survey of the presence of plastic fragments in oceans, and has found widespread evidence of this new form of marine pollution. Most samples were found to include fibres from materials such as nylon, polyester and acrylic. The scientists also found evidence of these particles in creatures such as lugworms and barnacles, which feed on sediment. This implies that the fragments could make their way into the human food chain.  Just as many plastic fragments were found in remote areas as in water close to large cities.

° European Court of Justice (ECJ) - Environmental cases:

The Netherlands  has been ordered to pay costs (Case Reference C-113/02) for failing to fulfil its obligations under Article 7(4) of Council Regulation (EEC) No259/93 of 01.02.1993 on the supervision and control of shipments of waste within, into and out of the European Community and under Article 1(e) and (f) of Council Directive 75/442/EEC of 15.07.1975 on waste, as amended by Council Directive 91/156/EEC of 18 March 1991 and Commission Decision 96/350/EC of 24 May 1996;

Spain has been ordered to pay costs (Case Reference C-398/02) for failure to fulfil its obligations in relation to Directive 75/442/EEC relating to management of waste at the landfill located at La Bañeza.

Italy has been brought before the ECJ for dereliction of its duty regarding dangerous waste (Directives 75/442 and 91/689).

See also: http://europa.eu.int/comm/secretariat_general/sgb/droit_com/index_en.htm#infractions

ENERGY:

Report claims renewables can meet 50 per cent of energy needs by 2040: A scenario document indicates how the future could unfold.  It states that biomass will be by far the largest contributor to renewable energy by 2010, providing the equivalent of 3.271 million tonnes of oil in a year. Next will be photovoltaic systems, equivalent to 784 tonnes, and then wind energy. The report calls for a significant increase in direct public spending on energy sector research and development in industrialised countries and for a rapid shift away from support of fossil fuel energy and nuclear fission R&D.  http://www.erec-renewables.org

TRANSPORT

Further projects for CIVITAS programme to promote clean urban transport: Six cities of Estonia, Hungary, Poland, Romania and Slovenia, are amongst 17 projects selected for the €50 million CIVITAS programme. The cities located in the new member states are Debrecen, Krakow, Ljubljana, Ploiesti, Suceava and Tallinn. The 11 from the old 15 EU member states are Burgos, Genoa, La Rochelle, Malmö, Norwich, Odense, Potenza, Preston, Stuttgart, Toulouse and Venice.

Rail Transport and Interoperability – Link to modification of the 'Acquis and Legislation' Section (Infrastructure: Estonia and the Czech Republic; TEN and Interoperability) Page link 

INFRASTRUCTURE FINANCING

Lending from EIB

° The European Investment Bank is providing a EUR 35 million loan to Cornwall (U.K., Objective 1 area) for education. The project covers construction, refurbishment and maintenance of 1 secondary and 16 primary schools located around the towns of Truro and Penryn and is financed under the Public-Private-Partnership scheme (PPP). 

° Further Information on European Investment Bank loans is to be found on http://www.eib.org

Lending from EBRD, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development  

° The EBRD is investing Euro 5 million alongside Norway’s Larvik Cell and Austria’s Heinzel Holding in AS Estonian Cell to build a Euro 153 million state-of-the-art pulp mill.  The shareholders will also extend a Euro 14 million subordinated loan to the company.  The project is the second-largest foreign direct investment in Estonia.

° Information on EBRD activity is to be found on: http://www.ebrd.org

° A competitiveness report by a Swiss business school, has put Denmark, Finland, Luxembourg and Ireland in the top ten of a list of the most competitive countries, and found Germany's Bavaria region and Slovakia to be two of the top ten 'big movers'. The report also shows that US companies are investing four dollars abroad for every one dollar invested at home. Asia is attracting 60 per cent of the investments going to developing companies, while China has become the top recipient of direct investment. http://www01.imd.ch/wcy 

° May Economic Indicators - construction confidence indicators remain unchanged in both the EU and the euro area. The indicators appear to remain on a recovery path that started in September 2003.  At country level, large changes were observed in some smaller Member States: increases in the Czech Republic, Estonia, Cyprus and Finland; decreases in Ireland and Slovenia.  Among the larger Member States only Spain (-3) and Italy (+3) showed more than marginal changes. 

(Acknowledgement with thanks to the U.K. Office of the European Parliament, London SW1)

European Parliament rules state that any 'unfinished business shall be deemed to have lapsed' at the end of the last session before the elections, nonetheless Parliamentary committees can resume their work on incomplete legislation.

Two examples of major proposals which had not reached their 1st reading vote before the elections were:- the REACH proposal on registering chemicals across the EU; and the proposal on misleading 'healthy' food labeling. Both proposals were still being discussed in committee when Parliament rose this month - it is very likely that discussion will continue in the autumn in committee.

Work may also continue where Parliament’s first reading is complete but Council Common Position is awaited (for example the first reading of the Consumer Credit Directive was adopted on 20^th April 2004 – there is no deadline or time limit for the Council to adopt its Common Position).

Parliament's rules do allow for the new Parliament to request that a Commission proposal be referred again to the Parliament; rules are also more flexible when it amendments are tabled at second reading if European elections have taken place since the 1st reading.

Where Parliament's 1st reading is complete and the Council has reached agreement on its Common Position, the time limits for Parliament to complete its 2nd reading only apply once the Common Position has been formally announced to Parliament. (A recent example is the Motor Insurance Directive. The Council Common Position was adopted on 26 April, but it will need to be translated into all 20 official languages before being formally presented to Parliament at either the July or September plenary session. Parliament will then have 3 months (extendable to 4) to reach its 2nd reading).

2nd reading agreements: A number of directives were agreed through agreement between Parliament and Council in the final weeks before Parliament rose in May. There is no pending legislation which has already been through Parliament for a 2nd reading.

Any proposals tabled by the existing European Commission between 5 May (end of last plenary in 1999-2004 Parliament) and 20 July (opening of 2004-9 Parliament) would need to be formally presented to the new Parliament once it begins sitting on Tuesday 20 July.

Note, however, that the European Parliament, in approving the recent nominations of new European Commissioners requested that the outgoing European Commission should not "take new initiatives of major political import relating to the period after the expiry of its mandate". The newly-appointed European Commission should take up office on 1 November 2004.

KEY PARLIAMENTARY DATES FOLLOWING THE JUNE 2004 EUROPEAN ELECTIONS

·         20^th July: The new European Parliament will meet for the first time (outgoing MEPs remain members until the inauguration of the new Parliament on 20 July).

·         20^th – 23^rd  July: Plenary session in Strasbourg

·         Main issues will be:

·         Tuesday 20^th July - election of the President of the European Parliament;

·         Thursday 22^nd July - appointment of the President of the European Commission and decisions on chairs of parliamentary committees.

·         End August 2004: Committees will resume their legislative work

·         13^th -16th September:First legislative decision-making session of the full Parliament in Strasbourg

·         4^th – 14^th October: Hearings of the new Commissioner-candidates will take place in the various parliamentary committees 

·         25-25^th – 28th October: vote in Parliament's Strasbourg session on Commissioners

·         1st November 2004: New Commissioners take up their appointments.

° Annual European association of research managers and administrators (EARMA) conference, Bucharest, Romania, 24th to 26th June 2004,

‘Research management and administration in a changing world'. Discussions to include:  managing, valuing and reporting the products of R&D; the effective operation of networks;  intellectual property policies;  strategic planning for international collaborations;  management of change in research: the challenge of the real world   http://www.earma2004.ro

° River basin governance workshop by FP5  ‘ADVISOR’ Project, Seville, Spain, 5^th July 2004

 A Fifth Framework Programme project on integrated evaluation for sustainable river basin governance seeks to develop a theoretical framework, policy guidelines and practical methods for integrated, participatory evaluation and assessment of projects and plans in the context of the Water Framework Directive.  Topics will include: monetary valuation methods; social multi-criteria analysis; participatory modelling and quality assurance procedures. http://gasa.dcea.fct.unl.pt/ecoman/projects/advisor

° Monitoring the geological environment Segovia, Spain, from 5 to 7 July 2004

An international conference on monitoring, simulation and remediation of the geological environment aims to attract a multi-disciplinary audience from the fields of civil engineering, forest and agricultural engineering, geography, biology, ecology and hydrology.  For further information, please consult the following web address: http://www.wessex.ac.uk/conferences/2004 /geoenvironment04/index.html

° B4E "Building for a European Future - Strategies and Alliances for Construction Innovation" , Maastricht , Netherlands, 14^th – 15^th October 2004. 

The B4E conference aims to reflect the views of all stakeholders in construction on the future development of European research in the sector.  E-CORE and ECCREDI plan to then incorporate the views of the entire construction sector in E-CORE research strategy and to present these to the European Commission, with the aim of influencing the development of the 7^th Framework Programme. The event offers an important opportunity to express a vision of the future of construction research in Europe and the challenges and opportunities of  the next decade. Papers that illustrate the way in which industry uses advanced technology, and the value of research and innovation, by reference to recent major projects, are especially welcome.  Focus should be on the following themes: 1. Smart Construction; 2. Building the Future; 3. Strategies for Innovation; 4. Strategic Alliances. www.b4e.org 

° Advantages for Real Estate and Construction Sector, Helsinki, 13^th - 16^th June 2005

The 11^th Joint CIB International symposium aims to put modern construction management and economics into a perspective of modern real estate and construction businesses and projects.  Topics of interest include the evolving sector, firms and their businesses, projects and processes, IT and construction processes, Foundations of our thinking and practice. The call for Papers will be available in October 2003.

Symposium web-site: www.ril.fi/cib2005  Tentative registration: kaisa.venalainen@ril.fi