Work of parliamentary RDI working group progresses – key actors heard at stakeholder event

On 8 November, the Parliamentary Working Group on Research, Development and Innovation heard the views of different stakeholders at a discussion event on the future of RDI funding. The work that had been done was considered successful, and the proposal of the working group on the principles for developing the RDI system won wide support. Of the alternatives for securing the long-term nature of public R&D funding and raising its level, a particular focus was on the Act on R&D funding and on the statutory plan for R&D funding that extends beyond the spending limits period.

At the stakeholder event, the working group was commended for its broad-based and thorough preparatory work. In terms of developing the principles, attention was drawn e.g. to the importance of predictability and a long-term perspective, and it was considered very good that the role of education, competence and experts had been taken into account.

The speakers also stressed that RDI activities must be goal-oriented, while also taking into account the diversity and broad scope of impacts. Focus on quality was considered extremely important, and its role as a condition for achieving impacts was emphasised.

Many speakers stressed the leverage effect of public funding on financing from private sources. Of the alternatives for raising public R&D funding on a long-term basis, most of the speakers drew attention to the Act on R&D funding and the statutory plan for R&D funding that extends beyond the spending limits period. 

It was also considered important to see contributions to RDI as future-oriented investments. We should talk about what will happen if Finland will not succeed in raising R&D expenditure to four per cent of GDP. This could mean that we will lose out in the global competition for talent. 
RDI should increasingly be seen as a tool for preserving the welfare society: raising R&D investments can in practice be a precondition for maintaining the welfare state. 

A summary of the statements on the future of RDI funding has also been completed. The RDI working group asked stakeholders for their views to support its work. A total of 43 statements were submitted via the Otakantaa.fi service. The request for comments was part of the stakeholder consultation process, and the statements will be taken into account in the final report of the working group.

The term of the working group ends on 31 December 2021. So far the working groups has examined six alternative ways of increasing R&D funding on a long-term basis, drawn up the principles for developing the R&D system, consulted a broad spectrum of stakeholders and assessed the impacts of different funding options.