He also conducts negotiations concerning the expected impacts of Brexit and opportunities to further develop bilateral cooperation.
At present the UK is in the process of preparing a comprehensive reform of the system of funding research, development and innovation (RDI) activities, similar to the one carried out in Hungary. The UK government decided in May to establish a new public body, the UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), thus as of spring 2017 this body will function in place of the seven Research Councils, Innovate UK, and the research and knowledge exchange functions of the Higher Education Funding Council for England. The Bill regulating the details of the institutional restructuring is currently on the agenda of the British Parliament and also discussed in the scientific community, generating heated debates.
József Pálinkás at the invitation of the University of Cambridge delivered a public lecture on 24 October in Clare College, a college with a history of seven centuries. He gave a comprehensive overview of the major initiatives of the past few years aiming to reform the Hungarian RDI system. In his lecture Pálinkás also provided data and information on the outcomes and experience. The former President of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences (HAS) in his lecture addressed the major steps in the process of reforming the network of research institutes of HAS, which started with the launching of the Momentum (Lendület) Programme and strengthening centres of excellence followed by restructuring the institutes, besides, long-term development and investment have also been initiated within the process. In relation to the reform of the funding of research and development József Pálinkás talked about the establishment of the NRDI Office being responsible for coordinating funds, the creation of a coherent portfolio of competitive calls, furthermore he enlisted the results achieved so far, underlining the fact that decisions have already been made on HUF 200 billion (EUR 645 million) to be allocated for RDI purposes. He put special emphasis on the excellence of Hungarian researchers, being measurable also in terms of the success rate in ERC projects – outstanding in the context of the EU13 –, which may be enhanced further by the means of competitive calls published in 2015.
In the morning of 24 October 2016 the President of the NRDI Office met Professor Sir Mark Walport, Government Chief Scientific Adviser to Prime Minister Theresa May. At the bilateral meeting József Pálinkás provided information on how the previously fragmented funding system of research, development and innovation was replaced by the system of competitive calls and applications evaluated by expert panels, where the planning of the calls and the evaluation of applications are coordinated in line with a coherent set of criteria.
In the afternoon of 24 October József Pálinkás had talks with Sir Leszek Borysiewicz, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Cambridge on the opportunities to further intensify cooperation between cutting-edge research programmes. Currently, there are twenty research, development and innovation projects run in collaboration between Hungarian and Cambridge-based research organisations and businesses, among others in the areas of food safety, brain research, material sciences, graphene research and social sciences.
On Tuesday József Pálinkás will have talks with Jo Johnson, Minister of State for Universities, Science, Research and Innovation (Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, BEIS), as well as with Professor Robin Grimes, Chief Scientific Adviser to Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson.
National Research, Development and Innovation Office:
The NRDI Office was established in 2015, in order to develop a more competitive RDI system, create a coherent system of competitive calls to facilitate the purpose-oriented and value-creating use of RDI funds available from European sources and the National Research, Development and Innovation Fund (NRDI Fund). That coordinated portfolio of calls being extended through 2016, supports scientific research projects, corporate development and the realisation of innovative ideas in a well-balanced manner. The NRDI Office is responsible for providing professional background to RDI projects funded from EU sources – Economic Development and Innovation Operational Programme (EDIOP) and Competitive Central-Hungary Operational Programme (CCHOP) – and for preparing the concept of calls for applications from an RDI policy perspective. The total funding available for research, development and innovation until 2020 is HUF 1,200 billion (nearly EUR 3,9 million), provided from EU and domestic sources within the framework of calls announced upon the coordination of the NRDI Office.
Presentation of József Pálinkás
József Pálinkás: Inspiring scientific excellence and competitive innovations - Renewal of the RDI system in Hungary PDF (2 156 KB)
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