Does Erasmus+ have a future in the UK?

The Prime Minister has guaranteed that the UK will participate in Erasmus+ until 2020, but what happens next is far from certain. Theresa May has recently guaranteed that the UK will retain access to the Erasmus+ programme until 2020. This was largely touted as good news but beyond that, the UK’s future participation in the programme is still uncertain. Erasmus+ is a European Commission funding programme for education, training, youth and sport. The programme is most commonly associated with higher education, an association that risks ignoring the significant impact on schools, youth work, sports clubs, adult learning and vocational training. Through the youth strand alone, €2.71million has come to Scotland since 2014. Participation in Erasmus+ projects increases young people’s commitment against discrimination, increases interest in political life, increases respect for and appreciation of cultural diversity, and increases readiness to work and live abroad.[1] Research even shows that young people with fewer opportunities who participate in Erasmus+ report a significantly higher effect compared against well-off young people.[2] For youth work organisations, participation in Erasmus+ means increased project management competency, increased implementation of good practices within the organisation, and an increased commitment to include young people with fewer opportunities.[3] It is important to note that each iteration of the Erasmus+ programme lasts seven years. The current programme runs from 2014-2020. The next version of Erasmus+ is scheduled to come into force in January 2021. Current participation models of non-EU countries in Erasmus+ give us insight into the UK’s options for participating from 2021. There are currently five non-EU member countries that participate in Erasmus+ as Programme Countries: Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Turkey and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. There are also countries that participate in certain Erasmus+ activities, subject to specific criteria or conditions, like Switzerland. Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein participate fully in Erasmus+ as non-EU Programme Countries. Their participation is ensured by the EEA Agreement. Norway, Iceland and Lichtenstein will have contributed €447,654,000 in fees over the duration of the current Erasmus+ programme. This model of full participation is our preferred option. Switzerland Following a Swiss referendum in favour of limits to immigration, negotiations for their full entry into Erasmus+ were abruptly suspended. To allow continuity of European mobility activities, the Swiss government paid up for their own interim version of Erasmus+. In 2017, the federal government allocated 25.7 million francs  (€21.9 million) to the programme.[4] There are specific challenges facing this model, for example negotiating complex bilateral agreements in order to maintain European programmes, and being excluded from the international network and further development of the EU Programme for Education.[5] #KeepErasmusPlus Issues like free movement and paying into EU programmes will play a key role in deciding the UK’s participation in Erasmus+ and other EU programmes. YouthLink Scotland have partnered with a number of organisations across the UK including SCVO to form the #KeepErasmusPlus campaign. The campaign asks the UK government to commit to maintaining participation in the Erasmus+ programme after Brexit. Find out more about our campaign and to add your support: bit.ly/KeepErasmusPlus Emily Beever is a Development Officer with Youth Link Scotland. [1] http://www.researchyouth.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/RAY_YiA_Findings-and-Implications_final.pdf [2] https://www.salto-youth.net/downloads/4-17-3230/ImpactOfMobilityOnYPFO.pdf [3] http://www.researchyouth.eu/effects-on-organisations [4] https://www.movetia.ch/fileadmin/user_upload/Aktuell/170908_Release_Movetia_Exchange_2017_EN.pdf [5] https://www.movetia.ch/en/news/wbk-fuer-schweizer-teilnahme-an-erasmus/?tx_wwmovetiaaktuell_pi1%5Bcontroller%5D=Aktuell&cHash=88c7e251dee8cd2cde79b712182338e9