As the EU continues to roll out FP7 (the seventh Framework programme for research and development), researchers are asking whether the prize of significant research funding is worth the effort that is involved in applying, according to the Editorial in September’s Nature Reviews Microbiology. (Nat. Rev. Microbiol. 5, 654; 2007.)

Why are European researchers so negative about the programme? “The main complaint, as everyone who has submitted an application will testify, is the overwhelming amount of bureaucracy. The paperwork demands are off-putting for many researchers, especially those who are already well funded from other sources, a situation that might deprive many EU-funded projects of the researchers with the most appropriate expertise and experience.”

The Editorial goes on to conclude: “being the world’s biggest programme for research funding brings with it inevitable problems and it remains to be seen whether these changes will placate scientists, promote research and untangle bureaucratic constraints. What is clear is that, despite the programme’s complexity, long bureaucratic procedures and the inevitable tough competition, many European researchers are witnessing increasingly tight constraints on their national funding sources and will have to look to FP7 as their best hope to make up the shortfall. Most agree, therefore, that despite the mountain of paperwork, the prize of EU funding is certainly worth the effort.”