Bringing ERA to the next level? - First deliberations on a future ERA Act at the ERA Forum in Brussels

On 4 April 2025, the ERA Forum held a meeting in Brussels for a first discussion between the Commission, Member States, Associated Countries and stakeholders on the plans for bringing forward an ERA Act in 2026.

The idea was first brought up in the Commission President's Mission Letter to Commissioner Zaharieva in September 2024, as a response to the expert reports by Enrico Letta and Mario Draghi, which had first brought up the establishment of a “fifth freedom” to be put on the agenda of the European Commission. The idea was then further elaborated by the Competitiveness Compass in February 2025, which introduced three areas for possible legal action on ERA:

- strengthening R&D investment and bringing it up to the 3% GDP target,

- focus research support more on strategic priorities and reinforce alignment between the EU and Member States’ funding priorities, and

- foster the circulation of knowledge and talent across Europe.

Building on this structure, DG R&I started its preparatory work. The path from broad “areas” to concrete legislation that is supported by the Member States and has the potential to effectively enhance ERA and a “fifth freedom” is long and difficult. However, the time seems right for determined action and for breaking new ground. The EU is facing probably the deepest crisis in its history, and it seems that Member States are willing to come together more closely, to find common solutions and enhance European integration. This sense of willingness could also be felt at the ERA Forum meeting on 4 April. Contrary to former attempts for binding legislation on ERA, where Member States had roundly rejected such moves from the Commission, there were no general negative statements from Member States this time.

The atmosphere was positive, the attitude constructive. Member States and stakeholders brought forward many ideas for potential aspects to be part of the ERA Act, although the meeting had more of a brainstorming character, and discussions were not yet very concrete on how to move forward on certain topics. The Commission presented a first collection of “areas of potential intervention” that represented a broad range of action from reaching the 3% target via researcher’s mobility to research security, open science or research infrastructures, to name just a few.

A separate discussion was held on the topic of Freedom of Scientific Research, which is supposed to be one of the areas in the ERA Act and where, in response to an initiative by the European Parliament, the Commission has already been working on possible legislative action since early 2024. In general, Member States are supportive towards strengthening the protection of Freedom of Scientific Research through the ERA Act, in the light of imminent threats from within and outside of the EU. However, also here many questions are still open, such as should the scope of the legal action be either restricted to scientific research or be wider and include the concept of Academic Freedom that is established in the legal systems of many Member States.

The process towards an ERA Act will continue with further targeted consultations, the establishment of an inter-service steering group in the Commission, and a public consultation in the coming weeks. An impact assessment will be carried out by the first quarter of 2026. The formal legal proposal is expected for the third quarter of 2026.