EU R&D spending on course to miss 3% target until after 2030

Success would require ‘decisive action at member state level’

The EU will not meet its target to spend 3 per cent of its GDP on R&D until after 2030, unless it dramatically increases its ambitions and investments, according to an analysis by the European Commission.

“Europe still underinvests in research and innovation in comparison to its main trading partners and remains away from the 3 per cent target,” the Commission chief economist on research and innovation strategy and foresight Román Arjona and his co-authors wrote in their write-up of the analysis, published on 16 July.