EU Commission's research funding plans slammed by scientists and NGOs

In an open letter sent last week to the President and Members of the European Commission, as well as the European Parliament and the European Union member states, 98 civil society and research organisations from 22 European countries warned that the Commission's draft proposals for the next Research funding framework (2014-2020) fail to address the real challenges faced by European societies and call for a research agenda geared towards the needs of society and the environment rather than those of big business.

On June 29, the Commission unveiled its post-2013 budget proposal, the Multiannual Financial Framework, which envisages a massive boost for the EU’s next research funding program, which is expected to have an about 100 billion-euro ($141.65 billion) budget, about twice as much as the current framework program (FP7) running until 2013.

Means commercially-driven projects could be prioritized