(22 November 2013) – The European Commission today welcomed the European Parliament’s adoption of Horizon 2020. With a budget of nearly EUR 80 billion euro over seven years, Horizon 2020 is the biggest EU research programme yet, and one of the biggest publicly funded worldwide.
It is also one of only very few programmes in the next EU budget to see a strong increase in funding – a nearly 30 per cent jump in real terms over the current Seventh Framework Programme. EU Member States must now give their final seal of approval ahead of the first calls for proposals under Horizon 2020, currently set for 11th December.
According to the Commission, Horizon 2020 is a totally new type of research programme for the EU that has been designed to deliver results that make a difference to people’s lives. Built on three pillars – Excellent Science, Industrial Leadership and Societal Challenges – it will fund all types of activities, from frontier science to close-to-market innovation.
The programme for the first time brings all EU-level funding for research and innovation under one roof, provides a single set of rules and will radically slash red tape. According to the Commission, the overarching goal is a more coherent, simpler programme that will make it easier to participate, especially for smaller research organisations and small businesses.