Sign up for The Insider

INESC Response to the EC Consultation on ERA Act

Policy Paper

A summary report capturing the key discussions, findings and follow-up actions from the INESC Brussels HUB’s 2026 Summer Meeting on European research infrastructure priorities.

Executive summary

INESC supports the ERA Act’s ambition to make the 3% R&D investment target a reality, and urges that competitiveness go hand in hand with widening and cohesion. Drawing on its experience as Portugal’s leading RTO ecosystem, INESC calls for a binding 3% target backed by national and regional investment roadmaps, stronger alignment of EU, national and regional R&I agendas through an EU R&I Semester, and research and technology infrastructures designed as tools for cohesion. It also proposes a common ERA Career Framework for researchers, harmonised open science combined with EU-wide research security protocols, and a European mechanism anchored in FP10 to carry knowledge from research through to market and societal uptake.

Key takeaways

  • The 3% R&D target should become binding, backed by national and regional roadmaps linked to FP10 and cohesion policy and monitored through an annual EU R&I Semester.
  • A European mechanism anchored in FP10 should carry knowledge from research to market, supporting pilot lines, demonstrators and testbeds to bridge the "valley of death".
  • Research and technology infrastructures should be treated as tools for cohesion, with fair access across all regions and a simpler, less crowded FP10.
  • A common ERA Career Framework should reduce precarious research careers, guarantee portable social rights, and create a dedicated EU mobility programme between RTOs and industry.
  • The ERA should become the world's most trusted knowledge space, combining harmonised open science with EU-wide research security and making Europe a safe haven for researchers at risk.

Authors & download

Authors: INESC Brussels HUB policy team
Download PDF

Last reviewed / validation

17/08/2026