The Coimbra Group (CG), an association of European comprehensive, multidisciplinary universities in 22 countries, has published its feedback to the European Commission’s Call for Evidence on the forthcoming ERA Act, welcoming the Commission’s initiative to strengthen the ERA.
The Coimbra Group notes that voluntary commitments by Member States alone so far have not proved sufficient to remove the structural obstacles to realising the ERA’s full potential and the achievement of the “fifth freedom”. This urgency has been echoed in the 2024 ERA Communication and in recent reports by Enrico Letta and Mario Draghi, amongst others. The Coimbra Group strongly supports the European Commission’s problem assessment and endorses the solutions proposed.