Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether it remains the Government’s policy to guarantee (a) Erasmus+ bids approved in May 2019 and (b) cover students’ study costs for the academic year 2020-21 following the extension to the Article 50 process to October 2019.

The government guarantee still stands. It will cover the payment of awards to UK applicants for all successful Erasmus+ bids submitted before the end of 2020 and it commits to underwrite funding for the entire lifetime of the projects. Successful bids are ones that are approved directly by the Commission or by the UK National Agency and ratified by the Commission.

In the event that the UK leaves the EU without a deal, the government will engage with the European Commission with the aim of securing the UK’s participation in Erasmus+ until the end of 2020.

If discussions with the European Commission to secure the continued ability of UK institutions to participate in the programme are unsuccessful, the government will engage with individual member states and key institutions to seek to ensure that UK participants can continue with their planned activity as far as possible on a bilateral basis.

In terms of participation beyond 2020, the UK government has repeatedly made clear that it values international exchange and collaboration in education and training as part of its vision for a global Britain.

We are open to exploring participation in the successor scheme to the current Erasmus+ Programme and we will continue to be involved in discussions about that programme while we remain in the EU. Ultimately, our participation in that successor programme is a matter for negotiations to come about our future relationship with the EU.

The government will need to fully consider the balance between supporting international mobility and ensuring value for money for the tax payer.