On 1 July, Spain officially commenced its six-month Presidency of the Council of the European Union (EU) and provided further information on its priorities.
As previously reported by UKRO, the main priorities for the Presidency in the area of Research and Innovation (R&I) are:
- Concluding negotiations on a new legislative proposal for the extension of the PRIMA initiative in the Mediterranean; and
- Reaching Council Conclusions on strengthening the role and impact of science in public policymaking process in democratic societies.
The newly published programme of the Spanish Presidency also mentions strengthening R&I ecosystems with Latin America and the Caribbean countries in addition to the Mediterranean region, as well as advancing the Commission’s proposals on the Horizon Europe Missions and research projects.
As a reminder for subscribers, the five Missions under Horizon Europe will need to be assessed in the coming year to see if they are still relevant for the overall objectives of the programme. UKRO understands that the Spanish Presidency will not deal with the final evaluation of Horizon 2020 nor the mid-term evaluation of Horizon Europe, as these will be tackled by the subsequent Belgian and Hungarian Presidencies during 2024.
Finally, the programme also states that EU research ministers will discuss how Europe can advance together with knowledge and innovation towards a fairer and more sustainable society during an informal meeting, which will be held in Santander later this month. The full list of R&I related events is included on the Presidency’s website.