Successful applicants for Horizon Europe grant awards will be
guaranteed funding regardless of the outcome of the UK’s efforts
to associate to Horizon Europe, under a new scheme announced by
the government today.
While the government’s priority remains association to Horizon
Europe, as both the UK and the EU agreed under the Trade and
Cooperation Agreement (TCA) last year, ongoing
delays by the EU have led to uncertainty for researchers,
businesses and innovators based in the UK.
To provide reassurance, the government has guaranteed funding for
the first wave of eligible, successful applicants to Horizon
Europe, but who have been unable to sign grant agreements with
the EU.
The funding will be delivered through UK Research and Innovation,
which will publish further details about eligibility, scope and
how to apply in the coming weeks.
Science, Research and Innovation Minister :
The Horizon programme has been a vital source of fellowships and
collaborations for UK researchers over the years, which is why
the UK and the EU agreed terms for the UK’s participation in the
programme under the TCA. The persistent
delays from the EU in formalising our association is creating
uncertainty in the sector and risks preventing valuable
international collaboration on shared global challenges, like
climate change.
We are committed to supporting the UK’s world-class research
sector in international collaborations, and this safety net will
give researchers and their partners the certainty they need to
continue to pursue their project plans and maintain world-class
science.
UKRI International
Champion Professor Christopher Smith:
We welcome the government’s decision to provide funding to those
who have successfully applied to Horizon Europe and will be
finalising the processes needed to distribute the funds in the
coming weeks.
We are also working with the government to prepare for all
possible outcomes to ensure the UK’s thriving research and
innovation sector has the support it needs to continue
collaborating and delivering world-class R&D.
In the meantime we encourage researchers and innovators across
the UK to continue to apply to open Horizon Europe calls.
In December 2020, the UK and EU signed a Joint Declaration on
Participation in Union Programmes and Access to Programme
Services, setting out the parties’ shared commitment for the UK
to associate to the agreed EU programmes (Horizon Europe,
Euratom R&T and Copernicus) at
the earliest opportunity.
The guarantee announced today is a short-term measure intended to
cover the first wave of calls until the EU formalises the UK’s
association, as was agreed under the Trade and Cooperation
Agreement. The government remains committed to securing this
outcome so that research collaboration can continue, and we stand
ready to formalise our association.
As announced at Spending Review 2021, in the event that the UK is
unable to associate to Horizon Europe, the funding allocated will
instead go to UK government R&D programmes, including those
to support international partnerships.
The government looked at the practicalities of handling such a
situation in 2020 and developed a detailed set of alternatives
plans, which included continued support for international
research, innovation collaboration and domestic research support.
This work is being refreshed and we remain ready to implement
these plans should they become necessary.
