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At the informal meeting of the Ministers of Competitiveness (Science and Industry), to be held between 7 and 9 February in San Sebastian, the issues on the table will include placing science at the top of the EU agenda and showcasing its role in economic recovery, as well taking the debate on the electric vehicle to EU level.

On Monday 8, the Minister for Science and Innovation, Cristina Garmendia, will chair the meeting of ministers responsible for research, who will discuss the challenges still pending for the launch of the European Research Area and the role that science can play in achieving economic recovery and growth.

The meeting will also endeavour to raise the profile of the commitment of European science as well as to make it more effective, through the "Donostia Declaration", a document that will launch the concept of a responsive and responsible science, capable of providing solutions in the short-term.

The agenda of the informal meeting includes the exhibition entitled "Silicon Dreams: Art, Science and Technology", and a dinner prepared by the most important Basque Country chefs that will endeavour to demonstrate the influence of scientific progress through various dishes.

On Tuesday 9 February, the informal meeting on competitiveness will be devoted to industry. According to the Secretary of State for Industry, Teresa Santero, the meeting will be chaired by the Spanish minister, Miguel Sebastián, and will focus for the first time on a single issue: the electric vehicle.