The European Union (EU) plans to spend around €80billion on research over the seven years from 2014 to2020. When the current European Research FrameworkProgramme (FP7) — with a budget of €50.5 billion —comes to an end, it will be replaced by Horizon 2020.This new Framework Programme for Research andInnovation will run from the beginning of 2014.Horizon 2020 is part of the EU’s Multiannual FinancialFramework (MFF), which is now the subject ofnegotiations between the EuropeanParliament, the Council of theEuropean Union, and the EuropeanCommission. Horizon 2020 is the thirdlargest budget heading after theCommon Agricultural Policy and theStructural Funds which promoteregional development within the EU.

Horizon 2020 is part of Europe 2020,which is described by José ManuelBarroso, President of the EuropeanCommission, as “the EU's growthstrategy for the coming decade”. Hesays: “In a changing world, we wantthe EU to become a smart,sustainable and inclusive economy. These threemutually reinforcing priorities should help the EU andthe Member States deliver high levels of employment,productivity and social cohesion.”1 Europe 2020 hasfive main targets: employment, education, researchand development (R&D), reducing factors contributingto climate change, and reducing the number of peopleat risk of poverty or social exclusion.

So, Horizon 2020 is not just about research for its ownsake. It is about developing Europe’s competitivenessin the global market, stimulating economic growth,and creating jobs. But, whilst one of the goals is toimprove Europe’s competitiveness, increasinginternational cooperation is also a priority across thewhole programme.

What sort of research will be funded?Horizon 2020 will provide funds for research projectsin a wide variety of disciplines. Eighteen per cent ofthe funding will go to the European Research Council(ERC), which funds high-quality research in fields suchas archaeology, geosciences and human rights. Largechunks of the Horizon 2020 budget will be devoted toresearch in the following fields: new technologies,such as nanotechnologies and biotechnology (18 per

cent); health, wellbeing,and demographic change (11per cent); and efficient,environmentally sustainabletransport (9 per cent). Allresearch projects will haveto meet ethical criteria,which mostly relate tobioethics but also includethe stipulation that projectsmust comply with the lawsof the country in which theyare undertaken.

Five per cent of Horizon2020 funds, approximately

€4 billion, will be allocated to research on “inclusive,innovative and secure societies”. Some of this will bespent on security-related research under the priority“societal challenges”. A variety of possible strands fallunder this heading. Current security research projectsfunded under FP7 cover themes such as effective andefficient management systems for securityorganisations in Europe, restorative justice approachesin intercultural settings in democratic societies, andneutralising improvised explosive devices in civilenvironments. Other topics of research which arelikely to be funded under Horizon 2020 includesecurity measures at airports and surveillancetechnology. There is considerable pressure for fundingalso to be made available for research on dual-usetechnologies — equipment that has both civilian andmilitary application.

Around EuropeQuaker Counc i l fo r Eu ropean Af fa i r s

No. 348 December 2012 - January 2013

Horizon 2020: Where is the Money Going?

UPCOMING EU CONSULTATION: SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENTThe European Commission is asking for opinions on sustainable development and the EU follow-up to Rio+20. Weencourage interested F/friends to respond – individual comments are welcome. The deadline is 15 January 2013, and youcan see the consultation documents at http://ec.europa.eu/yourvoice.

If you would like to receive in early January 2013 some of QCEA’s ideas on which you could base your own submission,make sure you have signed up for environmental action alerts by emailing office@qcea.org.

Nanotechnology is a fast growing area of researchand will be supported by the Horizon 2020research framework. Credit: Junbing Yang (CC BY-SA 2.0)

Every six months, a different European Union (EU)Member State takes over the helm of the Council ofthe European Union (henceforth, the Council). Thisperiodic change in leadership is known informally asthe ‘rotating Presidency’. It is an important part of theEU institutional architecture and gives Member Statesan opportunity to shape the policy agenda and provethemselves as capable leaders.

The Presidency has the responsibility of ensuring thesmooth running of the Council. It is responsible for itsadministration, but more importantly plays the role ofmediator. The EU Member State holding the Presidencymust be an ‘honest broker’, and work to create acoherent and common approach on policy within theCouncil between Member States.

The Council itself consists of ten ‘configurations’, eachof which deals with specific policy areas and comprisesthe relevant ministers from the national governmentsof Member States. For example, the EnvironmentCouncil discusses environmental issues and iscomprised of the Environment Ministers (or equivalent)of Member States, whilst the Foreign Ministers meet todiscuss foreign policy in the Foreign Affairs Council.The Presidency must organise and chair the majority ofthese meetings and their many subcommittees, and tryto create consensus on policy between the 27 Member

Who will undertake the research?Research projects under Horizon 2020, as in previousresearch programmes, will be carried out mostly byconsortia involving governmental bodies, universities,and/or private companies. Many non-EU countries arelisted as suitable partners: those belonging to theEuropean Free Trade Association (EFTA), countries thatare in line to join the EU, those covered by theEuropean Neighbourhood Policy, industrialisedcountries, emerging economies, and developingcountries. Military defence would be outside the scopeof Horizon 2020, according to the Commission’sproposals. But defence companies are not excludedfrom participation in security-related research.

The regulations governing participation in Horizon2020 originally contained no provision for excludingbodies that are responsible for breaches ofinternational law. The EU has a fundamentalcommitment to promoting peace, protecting humanrights and respecting international law. Despite this,under the original draft rules of participation, it ispossible that the EU would have risked condoningbreaches of international law or even assisted in themaintenance of a continuing violation of internationallaw. In order to ensure that this would not happen, aMember of the European Parliament (MEP) submittedthe following amendment to the regulationestablishing Horizon 2020:

Horizon 2020 shall exclude legal entities (includingany affiliated entities) whose participation, by theobjectives they pursue, their place ofestablishment, the nature or the location of theiractivities, would cause the European Union torecognize as lawful or render aid or assistance inmaintaining a situation created by a serious breachof international law (including international

humanitarian law) where such breach has beenestablished by a resolution of the United NationsSecurity Council or by a judgment or advisoryopinion of the International Court of Justice.

This amendment was passed by the Foreign AffairsCommittee (AFET) of the European Parliament andsubsequently, on 28 November, agreed by the Industry,Research and Energy committee (ITRE), which is theleading committee on Horizon 2020. The regulationestablishing Horizon 2020, including this and otheramendments, is now the subject of negotiationsbetween the Parliament, the Council of the EuropeanUnion, and the Commission. MEPs anticipate toughnegotiations because the Council wants to cut the €80billion budget for Horizon 2020 proposed by theCommission, whereas the Parliament wants to increasethe budget to €100 billion.

The passing of the amendment excluding entities thathave breached international law from participation inHorizon 2020 is a significant victory, ensuring that theEU only funds projects in line with its fundamentalvalues. This amendment should not be lost in the newround of negotiations. It will then be up to the EU andits 27 Member States to ensure that its fundamentalvalues are also reflected in its choice of security-related research projects.

Gordon Matthews

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In Focus: The Presidency of the Council of the European Union

For further background on EU security research, see thefollowing QCEA briefing papers: 'EU Security Research andPeacebuilding – a case of institutional and politicaldisconnect' and 'Horizon 2020 – Reflecting on changesproposed for the EU research agenda?' These are availableon the QCEA website - www.qcea.org

1. http://ec.europa.eu/europe2020/index_en.htm

States. Perhaps just as importantly, the Presidencymust represent the views of the Council to theEuropean Parliament. This latter role is vital becausethe Council and the Parliament must agree onlegislation jointly — the ‘co-decision procedure’. IfCouncil and Parliament do not agree,legislative proposals will not becomelaw.

It is unclear whether the Presidencypresents an opportunity or a burdento the Member State in office. On theone hand, the Presidency bringsinfluence and an opportunity topursue national interest. It sets theagenda of the Council, chairs many ofits meetings, and has access tosensitive information in the form ofthe negotiating positions of the otherMember States. On the other hand, it must be seen tobe impartial by the other Member States in order toremain credible, and thus, in some sense, mustsuppress acting in its own national interest. Althoughthe Presidency is supported by permanent staff in theGeneral Secretariat of the Council, it relies mostly onresources from its embassies and its wider nationalcivil service. Thus, for smaller Member States holdingthe Presidency could be a significant administrativeburden.

The responsibilities of the rotating Presidency havechanged considerably since the Lisbon Treaty came into force in 2009. This is mostly due to theintroduction of two new offices in the EU institutionalarchitecture: the High Representative of the Union forForeign Affairs and Security Policy (henceforth ‘theHigh Representative’), and the President of theEuropean Council. These two new offices haveassumed much of the responsibility that formerlybelonged to the rotating Presidency, particularly withregards to the economy and to foreign affairs. Forexample, in the past, the Head of State or Government

of the rotating Presidency might have madestatements on behalf of the EU on global issues. Thistask is now handled by the High Representative.

The Presidencies are grouped in to ‘trios’. This meansthat the six month periods duringwhich Member States hold office aregrouped into threes. This createseighteen month phases during whichthe three Member States cooperateto follow a common workprogramme. Trios were created topromote continuity betweenPresidencies and to allow olderMember States to support the newerEU members.

On 1st January 2013, Ireland willtake over the rotating Presidency.

This will be the 7th Irish Presidency, and it marks the40th anniversary of Ireland’s accession to the EU. TheNew Year also marks the beginning of a new trio:Ireland, Lithuania and Greece. Their eighteen monthwork programme reflects existing priorities within theEU: namely, the economy. The Irish Ambassador to theEU stated that “recovery, stability, jobs and growth”were the main concerns. The 100-page programmeitself states that “the main objective for the next 18months will be to strengthen the Union's capacity torespond to the current economic, financial and socialchallenges”.

The programme of the next trio has been criticised forplacing too much focus on economic developmentwhilst leaving environmental issues to the side.Despite the ardent focus on growth, there is very littlemention of sustainability or the green economy. Thecurrent financial crisis provides an opportunity forEurope to rethink its economic strategies. The newPresidency trio should not miss this chance to makechanges for a more sustainable and fairer world.

Chris Venables

When we act in the world, we create something. Wemay fancy we have the dexterity of a talented artistcreating a beautiful sculpture, but many of our actionsare more like footprints left after walking through apeat bog: deep but undefined depressions that may

last much longer than we intended. Permanence andpossible unintended consequences are both reasonswhy we need to plan our route carefully.

Money: money is an interesting element in our society.

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Is European Investment Creating the World we Envisage?

Presidents and Presidencies of the European Union

July - December 2011: PolandJanuary - June 2012: DenmarkJuly to December 2012: Cyprus

January - June 2013: IrelandJuly - December 2013: Lithuania

January - June 2014: Greece

July - December 2014: ItalyJanuary - June 2015: Latvia

July - December 2015: Luxembourg

Recent and UpcomingPresidencies in their Trios

Left to right: Van Rompuy, Barroso and SchulzCredit: © Photo European Union

There is no single person who is the head of the European Union, but thereare a number of offices bearing the name ‘president’. It’s easy to getconfused, so here are the main four followed by their current office holders:

The President of the European Commission – José Manuel BarrosoThe President of the European Council – Herman Van RompuyThe President of the European Parliament – Martin SchulzThe Presidency of the Council of the European Union – Cyprus until end of 2012

Money is only a symbol of exchange, and yet very fewcan survive without it, especially in Europe. Andmoney is used by the European Investment Bank (EIB)to fund projects supporting European Union (EU) policyobjectives. This makes utter sense, since the EIB isowned by the 27 EU Member States and describes itselfas representing their interests.

During the first week in December, one of the top newsstories regarding the EIB was its loan of €155 million tothe Irish Gas Board (Bord Gáis,pronounced with an ‘sh’ at theend) to support the extension ofwind farms for power generation.This fits in well with the EU’sEurope 2020 goal of having 20 percent of energy come fromrenewable energy sources in eightyears’ time. But we also need toconsider that the same strategyincludes a goal of a 20 per centreduction in CO2 emissions. Ideally, new infrastructure,including that for renewable energy goals, should notbe at odds with the CO2 goal.

Life cycle assessment (LCA) exists to assess how mucha new project, such as a wind farm, contributes to areduction in CO2 emissions. The most comprehensiveassessment is called ‘cradle to grave’: from the miningof materials to the disposal of the de-commissionedmachines and infrastructure. LCA includes processingthe minerals, manufacturing the turbines, packaging,transport, preparation of the site, and infrastructuresuch as new roads, as well as the operation of thewind farm, maintenance and replacement parts,dismantling, and end-of-life disposal. It is also commonto evaluate the possible impact on the carbon balanceof the change in land use, especially where peat hasbeen storing carbon for decennia.

A wind farm is more than some towers with rotatingblades. There are access roads and connection to the

grid. Also, wind turbines in peaty soils are oftendesigned with huge blocks of concrete to keep themstable and anchored. Concrete is a very carbon-intensive product. And the towers have to be able towithstand the pressure of the wind forcing the bladesto turn. Some towers are made out of steel: in oneexample for an Irish turbine just shy of 100 m tall,142,000 kg of steel was used in the tower — and itlasts only for two decades before it needs to bereplaced.

Each of these components ofthe life of a wind farm has animpact on the realcontribution of the wind farmto Europe’s carbon emissions.LCA is not a bankingconsideration of the costs orconsumer utility, but rather acalculation of carbonemissions at each stage of the

life of a wind turbine. Including this calculation indecisions to build or fund wind farms would helpensure that EU policies are being implementedcoherently: ensuring that building to achieverenewable energy targets doesn’t interfere withcarbon emission reduction targets. There is no wayaround this: in order to be able to state whether aproject contributes to reduction in CO2, one mustcrunch the real numbers. Comprehensive evaluationmust consider the carbon implications of a renewableenergy project.

Now, don’t get me wrong - I am not against windenergy. In fact, I grew up admiring a modern windmillalong the side of a major road between The Hague andAmsterdam – not to mention the old brick mills whichground flour from wind power. But preference doesn’tcome into the equation: we need to apply adequateanalysis to our decisions to invest.

Alexandra Bosbeer

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Around EuropeQuaker Council for European Affairs aisblSquare Ambiorix 50, B-1000 Brussels, BelgiumEditeur responsable : Alexandra BosbeerNo. entreprise 0420.346.728www.qcea.orgqceablog.wordpress.com

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A wind turbine built today can have a rotor diametreof over 80 metres and can be 138 metres high.Credit: Alexi Kostibas (CC BY-SA 2.0)