The European Union’s next seven-year science funding programme has to have a budget of €200 billion to ensure that future challenges can be met, say two of the European Parliament’s top voices on research and innovation policy, Christian Ehler and Maria da Graça Carvalho.
Carvalho also called for a doubling of the R&I budget at a separate event on Tuesday that was part of the EU’s Week of Regions and Cities. In a comment to Science|Business, Carvalho insisted that doubling the budget is not a mere ambition but an absolute necessity if the EU wants to reach its green and digital goals.
Asked to comment, MEP Eva Maydell said the Parliament must fully back the EU’s R&D sector with adequate financing but stopped short of repeating the €200 billion figure.