Research Ministers discuss strategic role of next FP and upcoming Strategy for Start-ups and Scale-ups

The ministers responsible for research and innovation from EU Member States, Iceland, Norway, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom held an informal meeting in Warsaw (Poland) on 10 and 11 March 2025. At the invitation of the Polish Presidency of the Council of the EU, ministers discussed the strategic role of the future EU R&I Framework Programme for Europe’s competitiveness and beyond, as well as the upcoming European Strategy for Start-ups and Scale-ups. The meeting was chaired by Marcin Kulasec, Polish Minister of Science and Higher Education. The European Commission delegation was (for the first time) led by Ekaterina Zaharieva, EU Commissioner for Start-ups, Research and Innovation.

“Towards the European Strategy for Start-ups and Scale-ups” was the focus of the first policy debate. The number of start-ups created in the EU is comparable to that in the United States, but European innovations and innovative companies often face two valleys of death, the Polish presidency stated in its background paper. First, new ideas with market potential often fail in transition from university to business, and second, new companies often fail to successfully pass from seed stage to growth stage. In this discussion, ministers addressed, among other issues, how to ensure more synergies between existing support schemes, and which financial instruments are missing or should be strengthened. Furthermore, the Presidency emphasised the 'Fifth Freedom' to complete the single market and encompass research, innovation, data and knowledge as indispensable drivers of innovation in modern economies, as proposed by Enrico Letta in his Report on the future of the Single Market. Ministers exchanged views on how European Start-ups and Scale-ups could benefit from the 'Fifth Freedom'. Commissioner Zaharieva announced that the Commission's strategy for start-ups and scale-ups is due to be presented in late May or early June 2025.

The second policy debate focused on “the strategic role of the future EU R&I Framework Programme for competitiveness of the Union, and beyond”. In its background paper, the Polish Council Presidency outlined the critical role research and innovation policy plays – and will also play in the future – in boosting the global competitiveness of the European Union and strengthening its Single Market, while improving the Union’s security, resilience, technological sovereignty and people’s prosperity. Ministers discussed the role of future EU R&I policy and its instruments, how to ensure balanced support for frontier research and innovation in the next EU R&I Framework Programme, and how to ensure that the next Framework Programme significantly contributes to closing the research and innovation gap between the EU and key global players. Following this discussion, the Warsaw Declaration on the strategic role of the future EU R&I Framework Programme was announced and supported by all Member States.

Ahead of the Council meeting, the Presidency had organised a visit to the Łukasiewicz PIAP. The Industrial Research Institute for Automation and Measurement Technology was founded in 1965 and, in close co-operation with industry, has brought forth a series of newly developed products and implementations. On the evening before the meeting, the ministers were invited to a cultural programme and a gala dinner at the Palace of the Commonwealth, a masterpiece of Baroque architecture.

The formal meeting of the EU Competitiveness Council (Research) is scheduled for 23 May 2025 in Brussels.

For more information:

Polish Council Presidency - press release

Informal Meeting of EU Ministers for Research and Innovation (COMPET Research)

Warsaw Declaration