"We will boost the financing of the economy by mobilising around 120 billion euro for immediate growth measures", zei Herman van Rompuy content. In dat bedrag zit ook €5 miljard voor de pilot met de zogeheten 'projectbonds', waarover president Barroso eerder dit jaar met ScienceGuide sprak.
Zo'n €55 miljard uit de Europese structuurfondsen zal worden verschoven naar projecten die wetenschappelijk onderzoek, MKB en bestrijding van de jeugdwerkloosheid impulsen geven. "The Structural Funds have reallocated funds in support of research and innovation, SMEs and youth employment and a further EUR 55 billion will be devoted to growth enhancing measures in the current period."
Investering in leerlingwezen en stages
Die plannen krijgen steun uit dat geld "notably to improve young people's first work experience and their participation in the labour market, with the objective that within a few months of leaving school, young people receive a good quality offer of employment, continued education, an apprenticeship, or a traineeship, which can be supported by the ESF." Stages en leerlingwezen worden hiermee gestimuleerd, een investering waar ook Angela Merkel al vaker voor pleitte.
De modernisering van de infrastructuur voor de kenniseconomie krijgt nog langs een andere lijn een boost. Neelie Kroes heeft haar hoofdprioriteit van beleid in het Groeipact weten te drukken. "Swift progress is required to achieve a well-functioning Digital Single Market by 2015, which will provide new dynamism to the European economy. In particular, priority should be given to measures aimed at further developing cross-border online trade, including by facilitating the transition to e-invoicing, and promoting the cross-border use of e-identification and other e-services. It is also crucial to boost demand for the roll-out of high-speed internet, modernise Europe's copyright regime and facilitate licensing, while ensuring a high level of protection of intellectual property rights and taking into account cultural diversity."
Impulsen voor R&D en valorisatie
Van Rompuy laat de regeringsleiders nog eens benadrukken, dat voor een innovatief en dynamisch Europa een snelle versterking van de Europese Onderzoek Ruimte essentieel is. "The European Research Area must be strengthened, in particular by improving support to R&D and investment opportunities for innovative start-ups and SMEs. The future programme for the competitiveness of enterprises and SMEs (COSME) and the Horizon 2020 programme will help innovative SMEs access financing.
It is of particular importance to strengthen key enabling technologies which are of systemic importance for the innovativeness and competitiveness of industry and the whole economy, including in areas such nanotechnology, biotechnology and advanced materials."
Door de Europese Investeringsbank extra kapitaalsruimte te bieden kan bovendien de investering in slimme groei extra aangejaagd worden. "The EIB's paid-in capital should be increased by EUR 10 billion, with the aim of strengthening its capital basis as well as increasing its overall lending capacity by EUR 60 billion, and thus unlock up to EUR 180 billion of additional investment, spread across the whole European Union, including in the most vulnerable countries."
Deens succes bij 1 patent
Een belangrijke impuls en kostenreductie wordt nu ook mogelijk door het Europese patent, dat na vele jaren van conflicten tussen de lidstaten en de Commissie in Brussel is geaccordeerd. Volgens eerst berekeningen zouden bedrijven -met name in het MKB- ongeveer €300 mln besparen door een eensluidend patent voor heel de EU. "After thirty years of negotiations, we now have an agreement on the European patent. The European businesses will now experience - when we have it finalised - that instead of applying for patent in 27 member states, they can now apply in one place. And that will be good for growth and business in Europe", zei de opgeluchte Deens premier Helle Thorning-Schmidt, die hier een doorbraak wist te bereiken.
De nu gevonden opzet is in de kern de volgende: "The future unitary patent would be valid in all participating member states and be obtained with a single application. The use of languages would draw inspiration from the current system managed by the European Patent Office, where the working languages are English, French and German, and this will cut down the costs of acquiring patent protection. Obtaining a patent that would be valid in 13 member states today can cost up to 20 000 euro, and approximately 14 000 euro of that sum would be spent on translations alone. In comparison, it costs approximately 1 850 euro to obtain an American patent."