House of Commons - European Scrutiny

Select Committee on European Scrutiny Thirty-Fourth Report

7 EC and Euratom research and development after 2007

(a)
(26879)
12736/05
COM(05) 440

(b)
(26882)
12731/05
COM (05) 442

(d)
(26876)
12727/05
COM(05) 439

(e)
(26878)
12734/05
COM(05) 445

(f)
(26877)
12732/05
COM(05) 444

(g)
(27575)
10233/06
COM(05) 439

(h)
(27576)
10234/06
COM(05) 440

(i)
(27577)
10237/06
COM (05) 442

(j)
(27578)
10238/06
COM(05) 443

(k)
(27579)
10239/06
COM(05) 444

(l)
(27580)
10240/06
COM(05) 445

Draft Decision on the specific programme "Cooperation" implementing the European Community's 7^th Framework Programme (2007-13) for research, technological development and demonstration activities

Draft decision on the specific programme "People" implementing European Community's 7^th Framework Programme

Draft Decision on the specific programme "Capacities" implementing the European Community's 7^th Framework Programme

Draft Decision on the specific programme to be carried out by the Joint Research Centre under the European Community's 7^th Framework Programme

Draft Decision on the specific programme implementing the 7^th Framework Programme of the European Atomic Energy Community for nuclear research and training activities

Draft Decision on the specific programme to be carried out by means of direct actions by the Joint Research Centre implementing the 7^th Framework Programme (2007-11) of the European Atomic Energy Community

Adaptation of the draft Decision concerning the specific programme to be carried out by means of direct actions by the Joint Research Centre under the European Community's 7^th Framework Programme

Amended draft Decision on the specific programme "Cooperation" implementing the European Community's 7^th Framework Programme

Amended draft Decision on the specific programme "people" implementing the European Community's 7^th Framework Programme

Amended draft Decision on the specific programme "Capacities" implementing the European Community's 7^th Framework Programme

Amended draft Decision on the specific programme to be carried out by means of direct actions by the Joint Research Centre implementing the 7^th Framework Programme of the European Atomic Energy Community

Amended draft Decision on the specific programme implementing the 7^th Framework Programme of the European Atomic Energy Community

Legal base (a) to (d) and (g) to (j) Article 166(3) EC; — ; QMV
(e), (f), (k) and (l) Article 7 Euratom; — ; unanimity

Document originated (g) to (l) 24 May 2006

Deposited in Parliament (g) to (l) 14 June 2006

Department Trade and Industry

Basis of consideration EM of 28 June 2006

Previous Committee Report (a) to (f) HC 34-vii (05-06), paras 8 and 9 (26 October 2005)

To be discussed in Council No date fixed

Committee's assessment Politically important

Committee's decision (All) Cleared

Background

7.1 In July 2005, we considered the draft Decision to establish the EC's 7^th Framework Programme for research, technological development and demonstration activities (R&D) for 2007-13 and the draft of a Decision to establish Euratom's 7^th Framework Programme for nuclear research and training activities for 2005-11.[28]

7.2 The legal base for the draft Decision to establish the EC's Framework Programme is Article 166(1) of the EC Treaty. Article 166(3) provides that the EC's Framework Programmes are to be given effect through specific programmes, each of which defines the detailed rules for implementing it, fixes its duration and provides the funds it requires. Similarly, under the Euratom Treaty, Euratom's R&D programmes are given effect through specific programmes.

Previous scrutiny of documents (a) to (f)

7.3 In October 2005, we considered these draft Decisions.[29] The purpose of four of them is to establish the following specific programmes to implement the EC's 7^th Framework Programme:

Cooperation;
People;
Capacities; and
non-nuclear work by the EC's Joint Research Centre.

The purpose of the remaining two draft Decisions is to implement Euratom's Framework Programme through specific programmes on:

R&D on fusion energy, nuclear fission and protection from radiation; and
work by the EC's Joint Research Centre on nuclear waste management, safety and security.

7.4 We decided to keep all the draft Decisions under scrutiny pending the settlement of the EU's total budget for 2007-13.

7.5 On 22 May, after the total budget had been agreed, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Science and Technology at the Department of Trade and Industry (Lord Sainsbury of Turville) told us what the budgets for the EC and Euratom Framework Programmes were expected to be.[30] He also told us the likely allocation of the budgets between the specific programmes. In our view, there is no "right" figure for the EC research budget and we saw no reason to object to the amounts about which the Minister had told us.

7.6 On 30 May, the Council confirmed the EC and Euratom R&D budgets and their allocations.

Documents (g) to (l)

7.7 The purpose of these six new documents is give effect to the allocation of the budgets by amending the amounts which were included in the draft Decisions when they were proposed in 2005. The allocations originally proposed and the revised amounts are shown in the following table:

Specific programme Budget proposed in 2005 Budget now proposed

Cooperation (EC) €44.4 billion €32.3 billion

People (EC) €7.1 billion €4.7 billion

Capacities (EC) €7.5 billion €4.3 billion

Joint research centre (EC) €1.8 billion €1.7 billion

Fusion, nuclear fission and radiation protection (Euratom) €2.5 billion €2.2 billion

Nuclear waste management, safety and security (Euratom) €539 million €517 million

7.8 The documents also set out the proposed annual expenditure of the specific programmes.

The Government's view

7.9 The Minister tells us that the Government accepts the proposed budgets and says that the allocations are in line with Government's policy objectives for the 7^th Framework Programmes and reflect UK priorities.

Conclusion

7.10 Documents (g) to (l) give effect to the budgetary decisions of which we were aware from previous scrutiny and to which we did not object. It follows that we see no reason to object to these documents and we are content to clear them from scrutiny.

7.11 In October 2005, we decided to keep the draft Decisions establishing the specific programmes under scrutiny pending settlement of the programmes' budgets. Now that the budgets have been settled, we are also content to clear documents (a) to (f).

28 (26581) 8087/05: See HC 34-i (2005-06), para 21 (4 July 2005). Back

29 See headnote. Back

30 See HC 34-xxx (2005-06), para 12 (24 May 2006). Back