Explanatory Memorandum to COM(2019)331 - European Institute of Innovation and Technology (recast) - Main contents
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This page contains a limited version of this dossier in the EU Monitor.
| dossier | COM(2019)331 - European Institute of Innovation and Technology (recast). |
|---|---|
| source | COM(2019)331  |
| date | 11-07-2019 |
CONTEXT OF THE PROPOSAL
• Reasons for and objectives of the proposal
The Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council establishing the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT Regulation 1 ), adopted in 2008, sets out its mission and tasks and the framework for its functioning. The Regulation was amended in 2013 2 in order, inter alia, to align it with Horizon 2020 3 .
The overall mission of the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT) is to boost sustainable European economic growth and competitiveness by reinforcing the innovation capacity of the Member States and the Union. In particular, the EIT reinforces the Union's innovation capacity and addresses societal challenges through the integration of the knowledge triangle of higher education, research and innovation. The EIT operates through its Knowledge and Innovation Communities (KICs): large-scale European partnerships which address specific societal challenges by bringing together education, research and business organisations. The EIT provides grants to the KICs, monitors their activities, supports cross-KIC collaboration and disseminates results and good practices.
The external evaluation of the EIT carried out in 2017 confirmed that the rationale behind its establishment is valid and its model of innovation-driven knowledge triangle integration remains relevant.
For the period 2021-2027, Horizon Europe will be the Union programme funding the EIT. The EIT is therefore an integral part of the Commission proposal establishing Horizon Europe and one of the three components of its 'Innovative Europe' pillar. The Horizon Europe proposal sets out the budget for the EIT for the next MFF as well as its rationale, added value, areas of intervention and broad lines of activity. However, the Horizon Europe proposal itself does not provide the legal basis for continuing the EIT operations as from 2021. The legal base of the EIT remains the EIT Regulation.
Furthermore, Article 17 of the EIT Regulation requires that every seven years the Commission submits to the European Parliament and the Council a proposal for a Strategic Innovation Agenda (SIA) that lays down the strategic, long-term priorities and financial needs for the EIT and that needs to be in line with the applicable Union framework programme supporting research and innovation 4 .
The EIT Regulation is not in principle time bound, contrary to the SIA. However, given that a number of provisions in the EIT Regulation make a direct reference to the current Horizon 2020 programme established for the period 2014-2020, those provisions need to be amended to make them compatible with the next Union framework programmes supporting research and innovation.
It is therefore proposed to make the new EIT Regulation time neutral so that amendments to it at the end of each MFF would in principle not be necessary or only minimal. The continuation of the operations of the EIT under each new MFF would be subject to appropriate funding consisting of a contribution from the Union. The contribution from the Union may be provided through a financial contribution from the Union framework programme supporting research and innovation as well as other Union programmes.
It would be for the EIT’s SIA to ensure the alignment with the objectives of the relevant Union framework programme supporting research and innovation, the strategic multiannual planning, monitoring and other requirements of that programme, and to foster synergies with other relevant programmes under each new MFF.
As the EIT Regulation was already substantially amended in 2013 and the current proposal contains further substantive amendments to the EIT Regulation, it is proposed to amend the EIT Regulation through the recast legislative technique in order to ensure greater legal clarity and better readability. The time neutrality of the recast Regulation will also enable to focus on the main principles of the functioning of the EIT/KICs. This, in combination with the stronger role of the SIA in aligning the EIT with its funding programme under each MFF, will improve the overall coherence of the legislative framework of the EIT, facilitate the application of its provisions, and make the legislative process lighter in seven years.
• Consistency with existing policy provisions in the policy area
For the period 2014-2020, the EIT's objectives, rationale, EU added value, budget, broad lines of activity and performance indicators are defined in the Horizon 2020 Regulation. The EIT Regulation sets out, in parallel, the mission and tasks for the EIT along with the framework for its functioning. The strategic, long-term priority fields and financial needs of the EIT for each seven-year period are laid down in the SIA 5 .
The Horizon Europe proposal confirmed the importance and contribution of the EIT and its KICs in delivering the EU's strategic priorities in the area of innovation. It proposes the EIT budget for 2021-2027, its scope, added-value and main areas of activity, while pointing to a revised role of the EIT in order to reinforce its contribution to Horizon Europe’s objectives.
The EIT is integrated within Horizon Europe as part of its Pillar III (“Innovative Europe”). However, synergies and complementarities with the other components of the programme will be created. The EIT through its KICs will also contribute to addressing the global challenges under Pillar II (“Global Challenges and European Industrial Competitiveness”) and Pillar I (“Excellent Science”).
Under the Horizon Europe proposal, the KICs are considered as institutionalised European Partnerships. The contribution of KICs to other relevant activities under the Horizon Europe framework will be supported through the multiannual Strategic Planning process, which will incorporate interdisciplinary and cross-sectoral perspectives and ensure that all activities under Horizon Europe are coordinated in an effective manner. In addition, the Horizon Europe proposal emphasises that “proposals for future EIT KICs in compliance with the EIT Regulation will be indicated in the SIA and will take into account the outcome of the Strategic Planning process and the priorities of the Global Challenges and European Industrial Competitiveness pillar”.
To deliver on Horizon Europe objectives close cooperation with, in particular the European Innovation Council (EIC), will also be important to ensure synergies and greater impact. The EIT and the EIC are complementary: the EIC will identify, develop and deploy breakthrough innovations, and support the rapid scale-up of innovative firms carrying out market-creating innovations at the European and international levels, while the EIT will contribute to the development of innovation capacity at European and Member State level through the knowledge triangle integration and support to innovation ecosystems. The distinctive focus of the EIT will be on human capital, entrepreneurial education, stronger regional outreach and support to business creation and development in specific thematic areas.
• Consistency with other Union policies
As described above, the Commission proposal for a recast EIT Regulation emphasises the SIA’s role to foster synergies not only with the Union framework programme supporting research and innovation but also with other relevant Union programmes of the respective MFF. Most importantly, it is for the SIA to create appropriate synergies and complementarities between the EIT activities and other Union initiatives, policies and instruments. The EIT will have targeted activities to that regard. Furthermore, the proposal reinforces the role of the Member States’ Representatives Group, which will help ensure synergies and complementarities of EIT and KIC activities with national programmes and initiatives.
LEGAL BASIS, SUBSIDIARITY AND PROPORTIONALITY
• Legal basis
The EU has a shared competence in industry policy based on Article 173 TFEU (Title XVII). According to Article 173 i, the Union and the Member States shall ensure that conditions necessary for the competitiveness of the Union's industry exist. For that purpose, in accordance with a system of open and competitive markets, their action shall be aimed also at fostering better exploitation of the industrial potential of policies of innovation, research and technological development. Article 173 i foresees that the European Parliament and the Council, acting in accordance with the ordinary legislative procedure referred to in Article 294, may decide on specific measures in support of action taken in the Member States to achieve the mentioned objective, excluding any harmonisation of the laws and regulations of the Member States. This provision is the legal basis of the current EIT Regulation and of the SIA 2014-2020.
The proposed reinforcement of the activities of the EIT, including in the areas of education and regional dimension, is innovation-driven and aims to fulfil the objective set out in Article 173 TFEU.
• Subsidiarity and proportionality
The proposal for a recast EIT Regulation respects the principles of subsidiarity and proportionality. It does not go beyond what is required for achieving the Union's objectives and provides a clear EU addedvalue in terms of economies of scale, scope and speed of investments in research and innovation areas, compared to national and regional initiatives and solutions. Moreover, EU action would not interfere with purely domestic scenarios or require harmonisation of the laws and regulations of the Member States.
The EIT has a unique way of building EU-wide innovation ecosystems of education, research, business and other stakeholders 6 . Cooperation activities supported by the EIT lead to an increased quality of action, innovation and internationalisation of KIC partners and organisations, the creation of cross-border, multidisciplinary networks, more cross-sectoral cooperation and geographical outreach.
The EIT is also the sole instrument within Horizon Europe with a distinct focus on education as a key driver of innovation, growth and competitiveness.
RESULTS OF EX-POST EVALUATIONS, STAKEHOLDER CONSULTATIONS AND IMPACT ASSESSMENTS
The proposal builds on the external evaluation of the EIT carried out in 2017 which confirmed that the rationale behind the establishment of the EIT is valid and that its model of innovation-driven knowledge triangle integration remains relevant. The EIT model targets structural weaknesses of the innovation capacities in the EU (in key thematic areas), such as the limited entrepreneurial culture, low level of cooperation between academia and industry and insufficient development of human potential, and aims to contribute to closing the innovation gap between the EU and its key competitors.
The proposal takes into account the results of the Open Public Consultation (OPC) that was run as a component of the European Commission’s Impact assessment to support its proposals for the revision of the EIT Regulation and for a new Strategic Innovation Agenda of the EIT for 2021-2027. The purpose of the OPC was to gather information, opinions and views from a wide range of stakeholders on 1) the challenges and opportunities in the European research and innovation area, 2) the policy objectives of the EIT, and 3) the policy options to tackle the challenges.
This proposal is supported by an Impact Assessment covering both the proposals for an amendment to the EIT Regulation (recast) and for an EIT’s SIA for the period 2021 – 2027.
That impact assessment builds on the Impact Assessment carried out for Horizon Europe. The positive opinion of the Regulatory Scrutiny Board was received on April 5th 2019.
The impact assessment accompanying this proposal identified the following policy options: a baseline option and two different options addressing the problems and technical issues highlighted in the impact assessment.
The baseline option 1 represents the continuation of EIT’s activities as they are today with only the adjustments necessary to align it with the proposal for Horizon Europe. Option 2 builds on the baseline. In addition, it contains the adoption of a number of technical measures to enhance the functioning of the EIT, and proposes a new action to foster entrepreneurial education across Europe. Option 3 differs from option 2 in that it would set up an EIT Hub in each Member State in order to increase the impact of the EIT activities all across Europe.
Option 2 was identified as the preferred option as it strikes the best balance in achieving the objectives of the initiative while considering the resources available and offering the highest economic and societal impacts. It will also entail significant improvements of the EIT in the next programming period.
• Fundamental rights
The Commission proposal respects the fundamental rights and observes the principles of the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights.
BUDGETARY IMPLICATIONS
The budgetary implications of the proposal as well as the human and administrative resources required are described in detail in the legislative financial statement 7 .
OTHER ELEMENTS
• Implementation plans and monitoring, evaluation and reporting arrangements
Monitoring and evaluation are fundamental tools in measuring the impact of the EIT and will be further strengthened and continuously improved over the next programming period. Given the nature of the knowledge triangle integration model, it will be important to apply a monitoring framework that allows flexibility at all relevant levels and ensures coherence with the general objectives of Horizon Europe and impacts sought.
All inputs, outputs, results and impacts identified in the impact assessment accompanying this proposal will be monitored through indicators. Such indicators already exist and are used by the EIT. Whenever they do not exist, new indicators will be developed in order to enable the EIT to monitor the achievement of its objectives.
In parallel and in full compliance with existing monitoring tools, close alignment will be sought between the EIT monitoring provisions and those that are put in place for Horizon Europe. For example, the EIT will align its monitoring tools with the Impact Pathways of Horizon Europe that seek to address the need for scientific, economic and societal impacts indicators more comprehensively. It will be a responsibility of the EIT to regularly monitor the operational performance of the KICs and to adapt its monitoring and reporting systems continuously. The results of such monitoring will feed into the business planning processes of the KICs and into the EIT decision-making on the allocation of the budget and preparation of the framework partnership agreements with the KICs as beneficiaries. The monitoring results should feed continuously into the policy-making process.
The evaluation of the performance of the EIT will be carried out by the Commission in line with the requirements of the amended EIT Regulation and will feed into the overall Horizon Europe programme evaluation that will be carried out mid-term and ex-post. This will include an assessment of the synergies of the EIT with the other instruments of the programme.
With regard to the KICs, a specific indicator framework will be used to assess the performance of the KICs during the next programming period (detailed in the proposal for a new SIA). That framework draws from current and previous indicators and fills gaps and deficiencies identified in the existing performance measurement system. It is also aligned with the Horizon Europe indicator framework.
• Explanation of the key changes in the specific provisions of the proposal
Article 5 EIT bodies - the proposal reinforces the role of the Executive Committee as a specific EIT body, underlines the accountability of the Director to the Governing Board and strengthens the independence of the Internal Auditing Function.
Article 6 Tasks - the proposal contains several precisions of the existing EIT tasks and emphasizes the importance of the EIT’s task to ensure an appropriate level of coordination and facilitate communication and thematic cooperation between the KICs. It introduces a new EIT task to design and coordinate support actions undertaken by the KICs for the development of entrepreneurial and innovation capacity of Higher Education Institutions and their integration in innovation ecosystems.
Article 10 Principles for the evaluation and monitoring of KICs – the proposal updates the reference to the Union framework programme supporting research and innovation as regards the indicators for the continuous monitoring and periodic external evaluations of the KICs.
Article 11 Duration, continuation and termination of a KIC - the proposal reinforces the comprehensive mid-term review of each KIC before the expiry of the initial framework partnership agreement and introduces the notion of a memorandum of cooperation, as a facultative means to ensure EIT-KICs relation following the end date of the framework partnership agreement.
Article 17 Financing of the KICs – the proposal moves the first paragraph of the current Article 14 on EIT’s financial resources in the amended first paragraph of Article 20 on EIT budget, accompanied by few modifications. In addition, it provides the principle for the revised EIT funding model in the sense that the EIT contribution to the KICs may cover up to 100 % of the total eligible costs of KIC added-value activities only in the initial stages of the KIC life. Such contribution shall gradually decrease over time in compliance with the co-funding rates defined in the SIA. It also emphasizes the importance of financial sustainability of KICs within the EIT’s competitive allocation mechanism.
Article 20 EIT budget – the proposal defines the funding of the EIT and the source of the EIT’s financial contribution to the KICs.
Annex I Statutes of the EIT – proposed amendments to the EIT Statutes with the aim to clarify the roles of the EIT Governing Board, Executive Committee and Director, strengthen the Governing Board’s role in the monitoring, supervision and steering of KICs and clarify the Commission’s role vis-à-vis the EIT to reflect its obligations in terms of monitoring and sound financial management. The proposal contains a new requirement for agreement by the Commission on a limited number of strategic issues decided by the Governing Board (e.g. monitoring and financial allocation principles). Finally, the proposal removes the reference to “fixed-term contracts” of EIT staff in order to ensure its professional continuity and development comparable to the regime applicable to EU agencies.
🡻 294/2008 (adapted)
⇨ new