Citizen Participation in Controversial EU Research Policies? The Debate on Human Embryonic Stem Cell Research Within the 6th Framework Programme

EU-competencies in “red” biotechnology are rather limited since health policy and the regulation of ethical issues of medicine and human reproduction is mainly a national domain. Nevertheless, embryo- and human embryonic stem (hES) cell research became an extremely controversial issue within and among the EU institutions in the context of research policy and the Sixth Framework Programme. Faced with disagreement between the European institutions and learning a lesson from the controversy about genetically modified food and the BSE crisis, the Commission used a remarkably participatory language in dealing with hES cell research. However, how did European institutions actually deal with the “ethical” problem of hES cell research and what was the role of participation in this decision-making process? (author's abstract)