A European Technological Community?

Abstract

In 1995, a new Commissioner for R&D, Mme Edith Cresson, arrived in Brussels. A former French prime minister and a political heavyweight, Cresson appeared anxious to make her mark on RTD policy, only to find that her predecessor, Antonio Ruberti, had neatly tied up most loose ends before departing. Framework IV was agreed and waiting for implementation, leaving Cresson with a relatively empty desk. However, criticisms of Framework IV began to emerge even before it started: it was too complex, lacking in focus, and contained too many lines of action. Evaluations of Frameworks II and III stressed the need for closer links between projects and users, more emphasis on application and, above all, on diffusion: getting European industry to worry about using and applying new technologies rather than (the Commission) worrying about who was making the hardware and its components.