UK urged to commit to Erasmus+ as MEPs push for higher budget

A member of the European parliament has urged the UK to commit long-term to Erasmus+ after lawmakers backed a higher budget for the student mobility scheme, saying that the country should not treat it as merely a “one-year experiment”. 

European parliamentarians have proposed a €47.39 billion (£39.7 billion) budget for the programme, an amount that is €6.6 billion more than the €40.8 billion (£34.2 billion) suggested by the European Commission. They have also pushed for a guarantee that at least one in five participants comes from a disadvantaged background.

The UK is set to rejoin Erasmus+ from 2027 for a one-year period after it reached an agreement with the European Commission in December last year that includes a 30 per cent discount on its contribution for that year. The first-year deal will cost the UK £570 million and targets over 100,000 participants. 

The government has said it will review the data before deciding whether the country should continue participating in the programme in the following year. 

Hilde Vautmans, a Belgian liberal MEP from Renew Europe, urged the UK not to consider Erasmus+ as merely a “one-year experiment”.

“Erasmus is the cheapest investment Europe has ever made in its young people, and British universities were among the most sought-after destinations in the programme. Our students have been missing each other for too long,” she said in a statement. 

In the UK, there have been questions about how Erasmus+ will operate in practice, particularly regarding the incoming international student levy. Critics have suggested that the levy, which will impose a £925 per student tax on international admissions from 2028, could put universities off participating in Erasmus+ if students on exchange placements are impacted by the fee. 

On the overall budget, Vautmans said the commission’s proposal of €40.8 billion was a “decent base” but “demand outstrips the places available”. 

“That is why we ask for €47.39 billion, and why we fix how much goes to education, to youth and to sport. Anyone planning an exchange must know where they stand,” she added. 

“Erasmus must not become a club for the well-off,” she warned. “Too often the only ones who leave are those who can afford to. Parliament now sets a target of at least one in five participants from disadvantaged backgrounds, and wants a simpler, more predictable programme, so that schools and youth organisations stop giving up on the paperwork.”

seher.asaf@timeshighereducation.com