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Parliamentary question - E-005839/2016Parliamentary question
E-005839/2016

European Innovation Council

Question for written answer E-005839-16
to the Commission
Rule 130
Barbara Kappel (ENF)

When the recent ‘Call for Ideas’ for stakeholder views on the European innovation landscape and the creation of a European innovation council went out, the figures were incontrovertible: 80% of responders considered the lack of disruptive, market-building innovations to be an obstacle to growth and job creation in Europe. Gaps in funding for innovation hinder ideas and innovative activities — particularly in the case of SMEs, which have scant access to funding owing to the complexity and duration of the process.

1. What is the Commission's view of the proposal to stop pre-defining topics for ‘Calls’ in order to facilitate access for SMEs to funding?2. Instead of an institutionalised Council which ‘manages’ innovation, what alternative proposals does the Commission have to improve the innovation environment and innovators' access to risk financing, the speed at which private capital flows into innovative projects and the ease with which venture capital funds can operate?3. Some national and regional projects could already be described as ‘best practice’, yet there is often no link between national and EU programmes, such as in the case of coordinated procedures, documentation obligations, etc. How does the Commission intend to improve this situation?