Annex A
BACKGROUND TO
THE EUROPEAN
SPACE AGENCY
1. ESA is an international space agency
currently composed of 17 member states.
2. It depends for its continuing budgets
on subscriptions from member states all of which are monitoring
closely what is done and how it is being done. The overall ESA
budget stands at around €3,000 million—small compared
to $17 billion NASA budget. Despite this, it has been able to
produce excellent space missions with the highest quality science
and applications. The cost at completion of ESA missions in the
science programme, for example, has generally been very close
to the original budgets: in the science programme, for example,
the average is a cost over-run of 4%. We are continually seeking
to maintain this situation.
3. Subscriptions are made by countries to
programmes proposed by ESA depending on the extent to which the
country has an interest in the area. For the UK the subscription
would come from the relevant government department or agency with
the main interest in that area, or from the appropriate combination
of BNSC partners. The programmes are overseen by ESA "programme
boards", on each of which the UK is represented. The performance
of the ESA Executive in managing any particular programme is scrutinised
regularly and closely by the Programme Board. The UK has a reputation
for being tough but constructive in our scrutiny. ESA programmes
fall into 2 broad categories: mandatory and optional programmes.
4. Mandatory activities are those in which
all Member States must participate and comprise the Science
Programme, for astronomy and planetary science, and the General
Budget, which covers basic research and the central costs of the
Agency. These are financed by contributions calculated on a scale
based on the net national incomes of the Member States. Currently
UK contributes 17.7% of the mandatory programme budget—the
2nd largest contribution. It has a world-class reputation in space
science. Mandatory programmes represent approximately a third
of the overall ESA budget.
5. Optional programmes representing the
major portion of the ESA budget are those in which each individual
Member State chooses on a case-by-case basis whether they wish
to participate and at what level. This structure enables each
Member State to tailor its participation in ESA programmes closely
to its own interests and is an important strength of ESA. The
UK has used this facility to focus its participation very selectively
in areas such as telecoms, satellite navigation and Earth Observation
where it has real strengths and see important user opportunities.
6. ESA develops its programme and project
proposals through meetings of member state representatives. Delegates
from the relevant BNSC Partners attend these meetings where there
is a potential UK interest. ESA Ministerial Council meetings provide
the opportunity for member states to discuss future strategy and
to subscribe to new ESA programmes and new phases of existing
ones. BNSC Partners provide a careful analysis of each programme
proposal, drawing on the views of the UK space community and relevant
economic advice, before seeking agreement from Ministers or the
Research Council to making commitments. The most recent Ministerial
Council was held in December 2005. The UK played an influential
role both on general strategic and policy issues as well as specific
programme proposals of interest to it.
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