The European Commission and the United Kingdom have reached a political agreement on British participation in the Horizon Europe and Copernicus science programmes, blocked since Brexit, it was announced on Thursday.
The agreement comes after months of negotiations and will allow British researchers to apply for grants and participate in Horizon projects.
Under this pact, as an associate member, the UK will also have to contribute financially to the EU budget with almost €2.6 billion a year on average.
From 1 January 2024 UK researchers and organizations will be able to compete on a level playing field with their counterparts in EU Member States.
The Government claimed access to the “largest collaboration program in the field of research in the world”, Horizon Europe, through a “personalized agreement with better financial conditions”.
According to London, British taxpayers will not pay for time they have been barred from the programs since 2021 and an automatic reimbursement mechanism has been secured if British scientists receive significantly less money than the UK puts into the programme.
The UK’s participation in the Horizon program was negotiated in 2020, but London has complained of persistent delays due to disagreements over Northern Ireland’s post-Brexit trade deals.
The Community Executive stressed that “this mutually agreed solution arises as a result of in-depth discussions between the EU and the United Kingdom and will be beneficial to both”.
“The EU and the UK are strategic partners and key allies, and today’s agreement demonstrates this. We will continue to be at the forefront of global research and innovation,” said European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, it’s a statement.
This political agreement will need to be approved by the European Council before being formally adopted in the EU-UK specialized committee on participation in EU programmes.
In addition to the Horizon Programme, the UK will also be an associate member of Copernicus, Europe’s Earth observation programme, which provides information from satellites and other sources for future weather forecasts.
Source: TSF
