EUCAR issues position paper on Horizon 2020 proposed rules for participation and dissemination
12th March 2012 – EUCAR issues position paper on Horizon 2020 proposed rules for participation and dissemination
EUCAR welcomes the package of legislative proposals by the European Commission for Horizon 2020, the Frmwaork Programme for Research & Innovation. Today EUCAR publishes its formal position on the proposal for a regulation on the rules for participation and dissemination in Horizon 2020. This position additionally addresses some issues of simplification not formally part of the Horizon 2020 legislative structure, but of particular interest to EUCAR’s members.
The proposed rules, including the new cost model, have the potential for simplifying the administration of R&D funding, but new measures must not create new burdens by shifting the complexity to a different part of the process. Beneficiaries require certainty and consistency in project administration. In particular, EUCAR recommends the following:
EUCAR requests that the “maximum” level of reimbursement (e.g. the proposed 100%) be systematically applied in all EU R&I projects, to avoid uncertainty and discouragement for beneficiaries due to potentially lower reimbursement rates.
EUCAR calls for a single reimbursement rate (i.e. 100% in the proposed text) to apply to all types of action, including all those “innovation” type actions listed in Article 22 §5(a). This would be interpreted as a strong stimulus for more innovation oriented projects and, again, avoids uncertainty and discouragement for beneficiaries from potentially lower reimbursement rates. Moreover it is difficult to identify and separate the different types of activities in R&I projects.
Provisions for applying scales of unit costs must maintain the option for applying average personnel costs using cost centre methodologies, as introduced by the Commission simplification of 24th January 2011.
EUCAR recommends the carrying out of an impact assessment on the options for externalising R&D management, in order to inform the most effective method and degree of externalisation.
EUCAR will continue to contribute the views and expertise of the automotive manufacturers to this debate and to the completion of the Horizon 2020 legislation.