Hopes fade for EU cash boost

The failure of European Union leaders to agree a budget for 2007-13 has thrown UK universities into confusion, apparently quashing hopes of a twofold increase in the pot of cash for research.

The Seventh Framework Programme on research was supposed to be the flagship of the EU's much-vaunted Lisbon Process, fuelled by a proposed E67.8 billion (£45 billion) in spending. But now there is doubt over how much money will be approved, and when.

Juliet Gayton, research officer at Exeter University, said: "There is a cloud hanging over everyone. We were all desperately hoping for a doubling of the EU research budget, but now no one knows whether there will be any funding at all."

She added: "UK universities are feeling rather impotent."

Britain assumes the presidency of the EU from July 1, and will have little goodwill to broker a deal after last week's summit, where its refusal to yield its rebate was a key stumbling block.

The European Commission staged an urgent meeting this Wednesday on the budget standoff.

Antonia Mochan, the Commission's research spokeswoman, said: "We need a deal; until we have one, we cannot make any final decisions about the framework programme."

She added that she did not know whether the research budget might be cut by 20 per cent or even 50 per cent from its current draft. "How much money will we have for all the things we have asked for? Will we have money for them at all?" she asked.

Amanda Crowfoot, European adviser at the UK Research Office, a Brussels-based support service that helps universities negotiate the complex EU funding system, said: "We've had queries from universities about what is happening but it is unclear what will happen."

She warned that the framework programme could not start until the political process was complate, adding that a loss of momentum in research funding could be damaging for universities.

She said: "If the programme doesn't start in 2007 there may be interim measures. There is some discussion about working on an annual basis for a period of time. That would be quite a small amount of money."

But Dr Gayton said that such a solution might leave universities in the lurch.

"An annual budget would be very difficult when you have projects that are supposed to run for five years," she said.

But Pierre Espinasse, deputy director of research services at Oxford University, said that he was more concerned about making EU funding more sustainable than he was about swelling the coffers.

He said: "Obviously we'd welcome more cash under the framework programmes.

But what we're looking for is a move away from Europe only paying half of the real costs of research."

He added: "More research funding at an unsustainable level is not going to help us."

Labour MEP Eluned Morgan, who is a member of the European Parliament research committee, said she would be "very surprised" if the Parliament gave the Commission proposals a formal first reading ahead of an overall budget deal, but that preparatory work would be carried out.

Her committee has drafted an initial response to the framework programme proposals and will stage public hearings on the issues this year.

"We can go a long way on detail," she said.

But Ms Morgan was pessimistic about Britain's chances of securing a budget deal in its presidency, leaving a "window of opportunity" in the Austrian presidency from next January to June.