In its new report the House of Lords EU Home Affairs Sub-Committee
has called on the Government to clarify its plans for future UK
access to the EU’s international mobility and research programmes,
‘Erasmus+’ and ‘Horizon 2020’, and successor arrangements which are
due to start in 2021.
The UK is a respected and important partner in both
the Erasmus+ and Horizon 2020 programmes. It is a popular
destination for mobility placements and a world leader in
research, with an exceptionally strong science
base.
The Committee found that participation
in these programmes provides clear benefits to the UK beyond
simply grant funding, including access to networks,
connections, and opportunities to collaborate with European
partners built over decades of close cooperation. It would be a
formidable challenge to try to replicate these benefits at a
national level.
As an EU Member State, the UK has access now to all
Erasmus+ and Horizon 2020 funding programmes. The Withdrawal
Agreement would maintain this access, and UK participation in
Erasmus+ and Horizon 2020 would continue largely unchanged until
both programmes finish at the end of 2020.
In a ‘no deal’ scenario, the Government has said it
would underwrite funding to preserve the UK’s access to these
programmes until the end of 2020. However, there is
an urgent need for greater clarity on how this guarantee would
work in practice. The Government must also explain how it would
replace major research funding schemes not covered by the
guarantee: the European Research Council
grants and Marie Sklodowska-Curie Actions, which
account for about 44% of total UK receipts from Horizon
2020.
Whether the UK leaves the EU under the Withdrawal
Agreement or in a ‘no deal’ scenario, it could still seek to
participate in the next phase of the EU’s international mobility
and research programmes: Erasmus and Horizon Europe, which will
run from 2021 to 2027.
The Committee concludes that it is in the UK
and the EU’s mutual interest to preserve current close levels of
cooperation on research and innovation and educational
mobility, and that the UK should seek full participation
in the Erasmus and Horizon Europe programmes as an ‘associated
third country’.
The Committee urges the Government to confirm
whether it will seek full association to the 2021–2027 Erasmus
and Horizon Europe programmes as soon as possible, to maximise
certainty and stability for UK students and researchers, and to
enable them to plan for any changes.
, Chair of the
Committee, said:
“The future availability of EU funds for
international mobility and research remains unclear. We need to
know how, in a ‘no deal’ scenario, the Government’s guarantee to
underwrite funding from the Erasmus+ and Horizon 2020 programmes
would work in practice. The Government must also explain how it
would replace major Horizon 2020 funding schemes not covered by
its guarantee, including the European Research Council grants and
Marie Sklodowska-Curie
Actions.
“The UK-EU relationship in the areas of research and
innovation and educational mobility must be preserved. The UK is
a popular destination for exchange placements and a world leader
in research, with an exceptionally strong science base. We also
benefit significantly from participating in the Erasmus and
Horizon programmes in terms of grant funding, access to
international networks, joint infrastructure, and opportunities
to connect and collaborate with European partners built over
decades of close cooperation.
“Full association to the forthcoming Erasmus
and Horizon programmes is by far the best outcome for UK students
and researchers.”
