The UK is set to rejoin the scheme in 2027 six years after ending its participation during Brexit
The UK Government has announced plans to rejoin the European Union’s Erasmus scheme, beginning in 2027. The move comes several years after the Brexit deal brokered by the former Conservative Government, which agreed to leave the Erasmus scheme at the same time the United Kingdom left the European Union.
Erasmus is a scheme that supports participants in educational or cultural programmes, allowing participants to study and work across EU member states. Participants could qualify for financial support to assit them during their term in the programme.
The deal to rejoin Erasmus will cost the UK over £570 million, which the Government claims is a 30% reduction in what it paid prior to Brexit, following negotiations with the EU. It is estimated over 100,000 people who are in education, training, or cultural programmes will be eligible to participate in the scheme.
The response to the announcement has been overwhelmingly positive, but there has also been criticism from certain public figures.
Former Principal of the University of Glasgow, Sir Anton Muscatelli, commented on X: “As President of @RoyalSocEd, I’m absolutely delighted that the U.K. is planning to rejoin Erasmus. This will provide huge opportunities for U.K. students across the educational spectrum. It will also provide invaluable connections for our country.”
Alex Stanley, who is the vice president of the National Union of Students, says that “the next generation of students from the UK would be able to experience it all, and campuses across the country could benefit from the perspectives of Erasmus students coming to the UK.”
However, Shadow Foreign Secretary and former Home Secretary of the Conservative Party, Priti Patel, has accused the UK Government of “throwing billions of pounds of hard-earned taxpayers’ money on rejoining Erasmus, instead of taking advantage of our Brexit freedoms to support trade with the rest of the world, boost investment and drive economic growth.”
The agreement fulfils a Labour manifesto pledge to rejoin Erasmus.
