Dear Colleagues, 

The agendas of this week’s meetings of the Council and its committees were extremely rich and varied, and I would like to share with you some of the highlights. 

A major focus of discussions was the Medium-Term Plan (MTP), which was approved with very strong support, along with the budget for 2018. The MTP describes CERN’s scientific and financial strategy for the next five years along with a longer-term view over ten years. Council’s approval of the MTP underlines our Member States’ continuing support for the Organisation, for which we are very grateful.

The CERN family continued to grow with the Council agreeing to admit Lithuania as an Associate Member State. I will be travelling to Vilnius later this month to sign the corresponding agreement.

June is the month when we present our Annual Report to the Council. This document is a record of our achievements over the year, and if you would like a paper copy you can pick one up in the library as of the end of next week. The report will also be available online. 

There is much more to cover, and I hope that many of you will be able to join the Directors and me in the Main Auditorium on Monday 26 June at 3.00 p.m. for a more extensive report. A webcast will be available for those who cannot attend in person.

The Council and its committees warmly applauded the continuing great performance of the Laboratory across all its scientific and other activities. This applause is for you. The Directors and I would like to add our warmest thanks and congratulations to everybody.

With best regards,

Fabiola Gianotti