The EU splashes the UK’s cash on more of its Green Agenda

23 EU cities awarded ‘EU Mission Label’ and cash for their efforts towards climate-neutrality

Montage © Facts4EU.Org 2024

Rishi Sunak signed us up to this by joining the EU’s Horizon science project

As Facts4EU.Org reported on 17 Feb 2024, PM Rishi Sunak signed up the UK to the EU science project called ‘Horizon Europe’. Yesterday the ‘EU Mission Label’ was awarded to 23 cities as part of the EU Mission for Climate-Neutral and Smart Cities, one of the ‘EU Missions’ under Horizon Europe. Not one of the cities on the list is British.

The PM did this despite the fact that :-

The EU had failed to follow its commitments to the UK under the Withdrawal Agreement
The UK had already set up the impressive ‘Pioneer Scheme’, making Horizon obsolete
3. The UK is a science superhub and the EU needs the UK more than the UK needs the EU

The Label recognises the cities' plans to achieve climate-neutrality by 2030 and aims to facilitate access to public and private funding towards that objective. The first ten cities had received the Label in October 2023.

The EU’s expensive celebrations

The EU Mission Label was awarded by EU Commissioner Илиана ИвановаIliana (anglicised as Iliana Ivanova) during a ceremony with mayors and city representatives at the EU Research & Innovation Days, the biggest forum in Europe to discuss the future of science and innovation and “to co-create solutions with citizens and stakeholders.”

European Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth Iliana Ivanova said:

“Congratulations to all 23 cities on this achievement! The label is an acknowledgement of your hard work and commitment to making your cities climate neutral and better places to live. I look forward to seeing the concrete projects that you develop as you move forward towards a more competitive, green and fair Europe. We will continue supporting you on this journey.”
- Iliana Ivanova, Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth, 21 Mar 2024

The 23 cities that received the label

Ioannina, Kalamata, Kozani, Thessaloniki (Greece)
Heidelberg (Germany)
Leuven (Belgium)
Espoo, Lahti, Lappeenranta, Tampere, Turku (Finland)
Barcelona, Seville (Spain)
Pecs (Hungary)
Malmö (Sweden)
Guimaraes, Lisbon (Portugal)
Florence, Parma (Italy)
Marseille, Lyon (France)
Limassol (Cyprus)
Izmir (Türkey)

Budget and funding to the tune of €10bn

The text of the Mission implementation plan provides an estimation of a sum of €10bn ”needed for the Mission to deliver according to its ambitions.”

The external study underpinning the assessment of EU Missions reported funding gaps at local, regional and national levels more than at EU level and “the need to align resources between EU, national, regional and local levels”.

About the Bulgarian EU Commissioner Илиана ИвановаIliana

Despite being the EU’s ‘Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth’, Ms Ivanova has precisely no experience of either science, innovation, or research.

Aged 48, her entire career has been spent in politics, specialising in finance. She has been in Ursula von der Leyen’s Commission for since 19 September 2023.

As readers know, Commissioners are appointed, not elected. As such it might have been hoped that someone experienced in science and/or education would have been appointed to this role. Because a Bulgarian had to be selected in order to represent all 27 EU countries, it was the Bulgarian government who nominated Ms Ivanova and Ursula von der Leyen went along with this.

EU-funded research projects on ‘climate change adaptation’

Funding sources

Number of projects

FP7

Horizon 2020

134

Horizon Europe

LIFE

142

Interreg

Others: JPI, ERANETs, Baltic Sea region…

TOTAL

499

[Source: EFIS study based on search in Climate-ADAPT database, accessed 02 March 2023.]

Observations

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Brexit Facts4EU.Org, Fri 22 Mar 2024

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Reader Comments 8

1. Sparky , Friday, March 22, 2024, 08:10:

Pioneer was contingency planning in case talks to rejoin Horizon Fell down. UK Science was left out of Horizon for two years whilst the EU used it to finalise what was launched as the Windsor Framework exposing one of the key assurances of Brexit, “we will hold all the cards”. Brexit allowed the UK to choose the card game and see our hand.
.
More Brexit waste, £24million Portsmouth border post, no longer required. £28million spent operating and staffing NI border posts.

2. Captain Thunderbolt , Friday, March 22, 2024, 08:43:

1. Sparky , Friday, March 22, 2024, 08:10:
Pioneer was contingency planning in case talks to rejoin Horizon Fell down. UK Science was left out of Horizon for two years whilst the EU used it to finalise what was launched as the Windsor Framework exposing one of the key assurances of Brexit, “we will hold all the cards”. Brexit allowed the UK to choose the card game and see our hand.
.
Do you even know what you are talking about?
Seems you just use talking points without knowing the subject
*
1. Sparky
More Brexit waste, £24million Portsmouth border post, no longer required. £28million spent operating and staffing NI border posts.
.
You whine that they didn’t prepare for the worst case scenarios. Now you whine I g because they did tsk tsk tsk

3. Ashley Great Britain , Friday, March 22, 2024, 09:45:

Pioneer was going to be brilliant for the UK and one of the reasons the EU sh*t itself and offered re entry to Horizon.
As the UK Gov and blob are EU loving sympathisers they couldn't wait to re join.
It was always the Eu's intention to make that happen after the usefulness of denying horizon deminished.
Now they'll have our money and expertise at our expense.
The Conservatives are going to be duly wiped out. But if people vote for Labour then we're even more stuffed.
1 Sparky.
I think you mean Brexit allowed the EU! Anyway it's thanks to complicit weak Government that we were walked all over.

4. Sparky , Friday, March 22, 2024, 11:44:

2 CT. You don’t believe me, have a look at the Prospectus for Pioneer and forward by Michelle Donelan, Secretary of State.
.
I’ve never said the UK didn’t prepare for worse case. You’ve probably confused this with my saying Brexit was a campaign with no strategy. The more time goes on the more that is obvious.
.
Think I’ve mentioned the OBR report prepared for the budget in the last few days.

5. NH , Friday, March 22, 2024, 12:28:

1. Sparky, "More Brexit waste"
.
More Brexit Savings !
EU discussing plans to raise 100 Billion Euros of mutual debts to fund EU defence spending. UK's share would have been approx. 15 Billion Euros to pay for other nations defence.
.
The £24 million is a bit of land with a warehouse which can be reused. I'll take the 15 Billion Euros saving, plus the 120 Billion Euros saving on other mutual debts, plus the £30+ Billion saving on annual fees, plus the saving on the charges for EU expansion, plus the saving on all the other charges they will no doubt come up with.

6. Sparky , Friday, March 22, 2024, 13:09:

5 NH. Let me know if the proposed bonds get anywhere, it is unlikely. A bit like a trade deal with the USA.
.
Reused?? The facility is likely to be demolished and a smaller facility built elsewhere.

7. NH , Friday, March 22, 2024, 14:39:

6. Sparky, "Let me know if the proposed bonds get anywhere"
.
Well the last bonds are still there, all 800 Billion of them, costing a fortune, and they will be there for 30 years or more !
.
If the new proposed bonds don't get anywhere the the EU defence plans will not get anywhere either. Most EU countries are so hooked on other countries paying their bills they no longer understand anything else and as we know most are not in a good position to increase spending.
.
It's a bit like the "EU Mission Label", it's not really about climate neutrality, it's about getting other countries to pay your bills..
.
The previous plans for EU defence cooperation ("The Main ground Combat System") collapsed into disagreements over costs, work share and specifications. Unlike EU defence cooperation, UK-USA trade is going very well and it cost's nothing it just creates wealth. It's a bit like UK-USA defence it seems to work well without any disagreements.
.
6. Sparky, "Reused"
Are they going to demolish the land and remove it from the earth ? I think you will find they we repurpose the land, the main cost, for other uses. Did Government waste happen when we were a member of the European Union ?

8. gazzablack , Friday, March 22, 2024, 22:53:

Ok this is off topic, but is amusing
.
As reported on Guido
.
Labour may have been enjoying a winning streak in the polls, though they might not be so pleased with the latest survey carried out for Times Radio. It revealed that a made up Labour frontbencher was better known amongst the public than Labour’s actual frontbenchers including, Debbonaire, Thomas-Symonds and Reynolds.
.
“Fiona Wilson” had 47% of people recognising her, and 15% of people thinking of her “favourably“. Shame for Starmer that the popular frontbencher isn’t real.
.
As Guido ponders - Maybe that’s why they’ve been doing so well in the polls…

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