RESEARCH: SWEDEN'S UPPSALA UNIVERSITY AND ITALY ASSESS THE ERA.

• Position: Industry Trend or Event

The University of Uppsala Senate, which represents the university's professors and students, claims that at present "the idea is that the Commission, as a proxy for sectoral interests, should decide which research projects should be prioritised". It claims that, while this system is not new, the introduction of open methods of co-ordination will lead to less activity within Member States by their respective research communities and undermine cultural and economic foundations of research within these states. "The credibility of Member State governments will, more than in the past, depend on pursuing the same policies supranationally as well as nationally and intergovermentally", says the Senate. It concluded that that proposal as it stands is "highly unsatisfactory".Responding to the Senate's claims, a Commission spokesman said that its proposals came after a year of consultation. "These proposals have not come out of the blue. The consultation was flagged to everyone, it was available on the Internet and at a certain point you have to make a choice. The scientific community has been heard". The spokesperson also pointed out that the Institute for prospective technological studies, which was independent of any influence, had spent a year studying what priorities would be most appropriate.Italy endorses ERA and FP6.The Italian Ministry of Universities, Scientific Research and Technology has been looking into the Commission's Communications on the guidelines for the ERA and the Research Council's November 2000 Conclusions, ahead of the publication by the Research Commissioner, Philippe Busquin, of the Commission's outlines for the next Framework Programme.Emphasising that many of the initiatives mentioned in these documents are mirrored by reforms enacted in Italy's three-year national research plan, the paper claims that "Italy can therefore not only fully support the desired perspectives for the future of European research, but also proceed in tune with the major orientations aimed at realising them through a renewal of its national research system and the definition of relevant operational lines".Referring specifically to the ERA, which the paper dubs "complex and ambitious", the Italian Ministry argues that the project will require more resources and more commitment. A revision of the instruments and their support systems will be needed to help link them to integration of Member States' policies. The paper warns against trying to do this...