Research & Development in the East of England

Written by Andrew Duff and published in Regional Monitor on Sun 2nd Oct 2005

The Liberal Democrat party conference in Blackpool was illuminated by a row between the Westminster and European parliamentary parties about the direction of the party's European policy. This is a row the party needs to have every so often in order to quell the rumours that it has forsaken its European vocation for the dreary neo-gaullism of Labour or, worse, the euro-scepticism of the Tories. This year, the row centred on whether or not to back Gordon Brown's policy to impose a cap on EU spending of 1 per cent GDP. (We didn't.)

Lib Dem MEPs and councillors are a tough combination for the Westminster establishment to beat. Both have a vested interest in boosting EU spending in the British provinces not simply because any spending tends to be better than none at all, but also because the European dimension of British politics feeds the party's aspirations towards developing more autonomous, self-governing regions. A greater regional assertiveness will play a key role in getting the UK ready to adopt, one day, the single currency. Within the monetary union regions have to compete with each other by dint of their real assets and potential for growth, such as skills base, infrastructure and quality of environment.

The East of England is no different from other English regions in having weak local government and almost no discernible regional government. Its declining industries are concentrated around the coast - tourism, fisheries and North Sea oil - and this is where the benefit of EU structural funds has been mainly felt. Luton has also been a large beneficiary in response to the close of car manufacturing and the need to improve the integration of its large ethnic minority. The region's transport and communications are heavily congested, especially in London's commuter orbit. Its agriculture is undergoing deep and unsettling changes, not least in sugar. Its schools are still deficient: recent surveys find that about a quarter of the region's school-leavers are effectively unemployable.

Where the East of England scores is in science and technology. It is in the top three of Europe's regions for hi-tech R&D, and enjoys an especially rich concentration in bio-technology. Cambridge is one of the very few European universities that can compete globally across disciplines. Cambridge University has spawned a large cluster of science-based firms, both research and service oriented. Cranfield University and the University of East Anglia in Norwich add significantly to the lustre of science and technology in the region, and there are highly successful R&D enterprises close by, such as Stevenage. There is little evidence at the moment that the region's research effort lacks either brain power or venture capital. The East of England has done well out of the EU's R&D framework programmes and stands to do even better in the future if the European Commission's recently less bureaucratic and more focussed approach is allowed to prevail. The revised R&D plans include a European Research Council to support truly creative science and technology, and a programme to encourage European scientists to develop their careers in Europe. If President Barroso's ambition for a European Institute of Technology gets off the ground, Cambridge would be its natural home.

Coupled with the need for a generous settlement of future EU spending on R&D, is the need to relax EU constraints on state aid for innovation, especially for start-up companies and SMEs. If the European Union can really act to boost successful clusters of knowledge-led industry, our region stands to benefit. The East of England must react swiftly to influence the Commission's consultation exercise on this subject. And, of course, Mr Brown must be defeated in his attempts to slash EU spending.

Andrew Duff is the Liberal Democrat Member of the European Parliament for the East of England. www.andrewduffmep.org.