Access to EU’s €100bn research fund and Erasmus student exchange at risk after Brussels rejects British ‘pay-as-you-go’ demands

The European Union has rejected British demands for “pay-as-you-go” access to EU programmes, including a €100 billion research fund and the Erasmus student exchange scheme, and insisted the UK commits to paying for membership over seven years. 

Brussels told EU negotiators that payments for associate membership of the flagship initiatives, which include EU-led parts of the Copernicus satellite and research into nuclear fission and safety, must be for the full funding cycle of the programmes. 

The UK wants shorter, time limited commitments and to opt-out of parts of the programmes, which Michel Barnier has dismissed as “cherry-picking”. 

He told MEPs the EU will only accept “full participation” in the schemes, which are open to non-EU countries and will last for the seven year term of the EU’s budget from 2021.

“They want to stop payments whenever they like rather than signing up to the normal financial period like everyone else in the world,” an EU official said. 

British negotiators have also demanded financial management safeguards and consultation procedures for the new arrangements after the end of the transition period and insisted it will only pay for initiatives that are in the UK’s interest. 

British universities, researchers and students urged both sides to break the deadlock to allow for continued UK involvement in the programmes from January 1. 

European Union chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier has told MEPs that the EU will only accept ‘full participation’ in the programmes Credit: Anadolu Agency /Anadolu

A UK government official said, “Negotiations with the EU are ongoing. It would not be appropriate for us to pre-empt the outcome of these discussions.”

The stand-off jeopardises continued membership of the programmes but will not prevent a free trade agreement being struck by Brussels and Britain. 

Negotiations over the trade deal continued yesterday in Brussels, amid newfound optimism after the UK made concessions over the level playing field guarantees. 

Britain has asked for non-EU membership of the Horizon Europe programme, a 100 billion euro initiative to foster research and innovation. It also wants to take part in research in nuclear fission and safety training, which is part of Horizon Europe. 

Dr Beth Thompson, of the Wellcome Trust research charity, said there was “strong consensus in the research community that staying as close as we can” to Horizon Europe would have “strong benefits for the UK in the future.”

“The programme gives us access to infrastructure that it would otherwise be difficult for the UK to fund on our own. It also gives us access to a much bigger network of researchers,” she said. 

Horizon 2020, the predecessor to Horizon Europe, involved 149 countries around the world taking part in research funding this year. It provided about 11 per cent of research funding to UK universities, Dr Thompson, the head of UK-EU policy, said, and competition for cash. 

The Government has committed to increasing UK investment in research and development to 2.4 percent of GDP by 2027 and boost public R&D funding to £22 billion per year by 2024/25.

The Copernicus Earth Observation programme has been vital in tracking issues such as climate change Credit: -/AFP

It also wants British firms to be able to pitch for lucrative contracts as the EU seeks to expand its Copernicus Earth observation programme. 

Nick Shave, the Chair of UK Space, told the Telegraph: “The Copernicus programme is very important for the UK space sector across industry and academia and supports thousands of jobs and posts across many companies and universities at sites all around the country including £100m’s in satellite-related and ground system contracts to UK companies.”

Britain can continue to be involved in non-EU parts of the satellite through its membership of the non-EU European Space Agency and of the European Organisation for Meteorological Satellites.

British and EU students face missing out on the Erasmus studying and job exchange programme, the Politico Europe website reported.

Tens of thousands of European students will be unable to attend British universities, with students studying Masters degrees or the equivalent being hit particularly hard.

The UK only wants to participate in student mobility and opt out of “cooperation actions”, which fund European university leaders’ meetings for discussions on subjects such as diversity. 

But the EU, which has suggested the membership fee be calculated on the basis of GDP,  says there is no precedent for partial associate membership

The Universities UK group estimates that Erasmus boosts the economy by £243 million per year once annual membership costs of about £180 million are subtracted. The EU plans to double funding for the scheme to £26bn for the next seven year cycle.

Larissa Kennedy, the National Union of Students President said: “If the government wants to show that they value education and international collaboration they must negotiate a deal that includes continued association to Erasmus+ and Horizon Europe.”

Vivienne Stern, the Director of Universities UK International said: “ We urge negotiators to act in the interests of students to agree a compromise.

“We know that students who study or train abroad achieve better degree outcomes [and] are less likely to be unemployed.”

The Government is developing an alternative programme in case negotiations fail, with funding earmarked to create a domestic equivalent to boost studying abroad globally, rather than just the EU. 

According to data supplied by Eurostat, more than 20,000 Masters or equivalent students came to study in the UK in  2016 and 2017, with more than 65 per cent of those arriving from France alone. 

By contrast, less than 600 British students travelled into the EU in each of those years to study at that level.

Turkey, Norway and Serbia are among the non-EU countries with Erasmus membership.