Prestigious EU council must ensure all domains are funded equally, says Ole Petter Ottersen
Ole Petter Ottersen, rector of Swedish medical research organisation Karolinska Institutet, has urged the EU not to neglect funding for the European Research Council in favour of work on the coronavirus.
In an article in the Swedish Research Council’s magazine Curie, Ottersen said he was concerned about a proposal by the-then ERC president Mauro Ferrari to use the ERC’s funding and support structure for a specific research programme on coronavirus.
“Such a top-down strategy goes against the very essence of what the ERC should stand for,” said Ottersen. “There are a host of other structures that can ensure that sufficient funds and grants are provided to research on the coronavirus, both within the EU research framework and in the individual member states.”
Ottersen said that it was a sign of the ERC’s health that the council’s board voted against Ferrari’s proposal to focus on coronavirus, thus making his position untenable. Ferrari resigned in April, after only three months as president.
According to Ottersen, who worked on one of the ERC’s grants panels, much publicly funded research across Europe, especially in medicine, has been almost completely focused on the coronavirus and potential treatment methods. Ottersen said this is obviously understandable, but warned that a knock-on effect of this shift in focus could mean lost momentum and reduced investments in other research.
“There should be an awareness that the needs of other research projects are not being diminished because of the coronavirus crisis,” he said. “Of course, coronavirus research is important. However, this research must be primarily supported by funding from other funders.”
Ottersen demanded assurances that the ERC’s governance or research focus will not be changed and that its funding will not be cut. He said he took a particular interest, because of Sweden’s long-term involvement in the council, and the country’s successes in its research programmes.
“Swedish researchers were instrumental in establishing the ERC,” Ottersen said. “It is close to our hearts. With a stated goal of being an independent actor, built up by researchers for researchers, and with a clear purpose to support cutting edge science, the ERC has significantly strengthened the EU’s position in the global research arena.”
Sweden won six Advanced Grants and 14 Starting Grants from the ERC in 2019.
Ottersen said, the EU budget remains under great pressure, partially because of Brexit. In addition, negotiations are underway for a new multi-annual framework programme for the EU’s Horizon Europe funding programme.
“It appears that appropriations for the framework programme will decrease both in percentage and absolute terms,” said Ottersen. “This will affect EU research in different ways, and it is also likely to have a negative impact on the ERC’s position.”
Consequently, suggested Ottersen, the council’s independent research perspective risks being weakened and eroded, which could diminish the EU’s status as a strong innovation centre and as a magnet for researchers from all over the world. “That would be devastating,” he said.