European Cluster Policy Group appointed to advise on modern policy responses in support of more world-class clusters in the EU

The European Commission has adopted a Decision to set up a European Cluster Policy Group with the aim of exploring how to better assist Member States in supporting the emergence of more world-class clusters in the EU. The European Cluster Policy Group, the result of the European Commission Decision on 22 October 2008, will start its 18-month term in April 2009 . It will meet four times and conduct two study visits in order to identify best available practices in support of world-class clusters. The members of the group have been appointed, and are published in the OJ C59 of 13 March 2009.

The group's tasks are as follows:

• to make recommendations on how to better design cluster policies in the Community;
• to assess international trends in cluster development;
• to identify future challenges for cluster policies in response to globalisation;
• to explore tools for the removal of existing barriers to transnational cluster cooperation; and
• to analyse complementarities between the main Community level policies and the financial instruments that support clusters.