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European Commission - Speech [Check Against Delivery] Remarks by Commissioner Dombrovskis at Future Circular Collider conference in Helsinki Helsinki, 8 June 2026 Distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, It is a great honour to deliver the opening address at the twelfth edition of the Future Circular Collider conference. Indeed, speaking as a physicist, it is a special privilege and inspiration to be amongst such ...
European Commission - Speech [Check Against Delivery] Remarks by Commissioner Dombrovskis at Future Circular Collider conference in Helsinki Helsinki, 8 June 2026 Distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, It is a great honour to deliver the opening address at the twelfth edition of the Future Circular Collider conference. Indeed, speaking as a physicist, it is a special privilege and inspiration to be amongst such a distinguished network of researchers today. During my recent visit to CERN, I witnessed first-hand what can be achieved when we come together and invest in excellence. From the scale of its infrastructure to the people and ideas driving innovation, CERN represents the very best of what European cooperation can deliver. And shows how collaborative science can be a force to shape the future. Most EU Member States cannot achieve the necessary scale to deliver world leading research and technological infrastructure alone. CERN shows how Europe can deliver on ambition when it comes together around a shared mission. It shows how a joint vision, long-term commitment, and the ability to work together across borders can deliver results. It shows that Europe is more than the sum of its parts. Today's world has grown more challenging and less predictable for reasons that we are all familiar with. For those of us following the news closely, it can sometimes feel as though we ourselves are living inside a particle accelerator! Today, the European economy continues to demonstrate resilience as it navigates one crisis after another. But there remains an urgent need for Europe to act to enhance its competitiveness. This is essential to secure our long-term prosperity and preserve our strategic autonomy. And it demands work on all fronts. But perhaps most of all, it calls for Europe to focus on closing the innovation gap with international competitors. The EU has fallen behind the US in advanced technologies, while China has caught up in many sectors and is winning the race for leadership in certain new growth areas. The problem is not that Europe lacks ideas or ambition. We have many talented researchers and entrepreneurs filing patents. Many of them are in the room with us today. Rather, innovation is blocked at the next stage. Europe is not making the most of opportunities to translate ideas into new, marketable technologies. Innovation must be at the heart of Europe's economic renewal. With the world on the cusp of an AI-powered technological revolution, now is the moment for Europe to unlock our full innovative potential. The price of failing to act is simply too high: a diminished Europe, shaped by global events rather than shaping them. A Europe which is less prosperous and less secure. CERN's track record of powering innovation is clear. It generates spillovers into industry, creates skilled workforce pipelines, and anchors technological leadership in Europe. The technologies it has helped to create have had a real economic impact, helping to develop everything from touchscreens to new tools to fight cancer. Today, it stands at a crossroads. You gather this week to discuss Europe's next potential large-scale research infrastructure: The Future Circular Collider (FCC). The FCC is unprecedented in both scale and ambition. A 91-kilometre tunnel at an average depth of 200 metres. It would reveal answers about nature's rulebook that go well beyond the reach of current colliders. And support decades of scientific research, reinforcing Europe's leadership in particle physics throughout the 21st century and beyond. It can play a key role in strengthening our strategic autonomy in critical deep technologies and translating innovation into commercialisation. And it sends the strongest possible signal to global partners and competitors that Europe intends to remain at the scientific frontier. Finally, a word on talent. CERN is also playing an important role in Europe's competition to attract and retain top scientific talent. Research institutions of the calibre of CERN are among our most effective tools in that competition. It makes Europe a place where the ambitions of researchers can be fully realised. And inspires the next generation of scientists and researchers to build their careers here. Ladies and gentlemen, it is clear that the investments we make today will help to define Europe's place in the world for decades to come. That applies to our security, competitiveness and energy, as much as it does to science and innovation. The EU will continue to play its part to support CERN's ambition and maintain Europe's leadership in particle physics research. The European Commission is engaging with CERN on a range of policy areas relevant for scientific excellence, technological sovereignty, innovation, energy and health. Indeed, I am proud to say that the EU provided support for the Future Circular Collider concept study and the feasibility study that will be discussed at this week's conference. The European Commission's Joint Research Centre and CERN have a longstanding collaboration across three areas that go directly to Europe's strategic priorities: nuclear applications for health, Big Data, and technology transfer. On technology transfer, this cooperation is doing precisely what our competitiveness agenda calls for: bridging the gap between fundamental research and industrial application and moving discoveries from the lab to the market. The results are tangible. Joint work on nuclear medicine is delivering new cancer treatments, supporting the EU Mission on Cancer, and strengthening Europe's sovereignty in medical isotopes bringing life-saving therapies to patients across the continent. And that support is embedded in the Commission's proposal for its next long-term budget. As part of the next long-term EU budget 2028-2034, the Commission has proposed to double the budget of the research and innovation framework programme to €175 billion. The new Horizon Europe will boost Europe's competitiveness and fund solutions to real-world challenges. From AI that supports doctors, to satellites that protect farmers, to cleaner, smarter ways to move, live, and work. And it would support so-called ‘moonshot' projects, designed to position Europe as a global leader in strategic fields. These include including investing in the Future Circular Collider, alongside CERN's other participating countries. To conclude, at a time when multilateralism is seemingly in retreat, CERN reminds us of what is possible when we come together around a shared purpose. The FCC is the kind of project that can define what Europe chooses to be for a century to come. Turning this vision into reality will require sustained engagement from European institutions, Member States, industry, and the scientific community. But this is precisely the kind of ambition that shows what Europe can do best: come together to invest in the future and lead through science, innovation, and cooperation. Ladies and gentlemen, I believe Europe can and should continue to lead. And the Future Circular Collider can provide another opportunity to do so. Thank you. SPEECH/26/1289
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