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The UK will rejoin the EU’s Erasmus student exchange scheme, the government has confirmed. EU relations minister Nick Thomas-Symonds said the breakthrough ‘is a huge win for our young people’, who will be able to study or train under the EU scheme from January 2027. Work on the UK joining the Erasmus programme was announced as part of Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s post-Brexit reset deal with Brussels in May. The UK left the scheme under Boris Johnson, who argued it did not offer value for money. The Cabinet Office said the UK has now negotiated financial terms that ‘strike a fair balance between our contribution and the benefits the programme offers’, including a 30% reduction in fees for the first year. The UK will pay around £570 million in 2027, with the cost for future years to be agreed with the bloc. The Times reported that the UK had pushed for a 50% discount on membership fees. More than 100,000 Britons could benefit from the scheme in the first year alone, according to the government. As well as university-based study exchanges, Erasmus+ will allow further education students and apprentices to take up work placements in European firms. There will be exchange opportunities for adult learners, school groups and sports coaches and job shadowing and training abroad will be available to education staff. Ministers aim to maximise take-up, particularly among disadvantaged groups, by working with institutions and young people. A UK national agency will be set up to run the programme. The government also hailed an agreement to start talks on the UK participating in the EU’s internal electricity market, which it says could lower electricity costs at home. A deadline has also been set to complete negotiations on a food and drink trade deal and carbon markets linkage before the next UK-EU summit expected in the spring. The progress comes after Thomas-Symonds held talks with the European Commission’s Maros Sefcovic in Brussels last week, as the deadline loomed for the UK to join Erasmus in time for 2027. The Cabinet Office minister said: ‘Joining Erasmus+ is a huge win for our young people, breaking down barriers and widening horizons to ensure everyone, from every background, has the opportunity to study and train abroad. ‘This is about more than just travel: it’s about future skills, academic success, and giving the next generation access to the best possible opportunities. ‘Today’s agreements prove that our new partnership with the EU is working. We have focused on the public’s priorities and secured a deal that puts opportunity first.’ Skills minister Jacqui Smith said: ‘Erasmus+ will open doors for thousands of students and staff right across the country in universities, schools, colleges and adult education.’ Under Johnson, the UK pulled out of Erasmus, launching the Turing scheme as a domestic alternative, arguing that remaining in the EU scheme would have meant a net cost of £2 billion over seven years. The government vowed to ‘provide certainty’ to universities on complementary schemes such as Turing. News of the breakthrough was welcomed by the UK’s universities and pro-EU campaigners. Tim Bradshaw, chief executive of the Russell Group of leading universities, said: ‘We’re delighted at the UK’s association to Erasmus+. ‘With an even greater scope than previous programmes, Erasmus+ opens up fantastic opportunities for students, adult learners and young people to all benefit from new experiences and learning. ‘It will also renew the huge contributions that EU students and staff make to life on our university campuses.’ Nick Harvey, chief executive of European Movement UK, said: ‘This announcement has been hoped for for some time. ‘Alongside a defence pact between the UK and EU, it was seen as a clear pathway towards closer ties in the UK-EU reset announced earlier this year, and a concrete example of thawing relationships. The UK’s former hostility to the idea could not be justified when the benefits of such a scheme are so obvious. ‘Dismissing the idea simply meant letting down British young people who face all sorts of economic difficulties, and have seen their horizons curtailed by Brexit. ‘Young people want and deserve the chance to study or work in Europe. The government owes it to them to make sure they get that chance, and rejoining Erasmus+ is a giant step forwards.’ Liberal Democrats universities spokesman Ian Sollom said: ‘While this is a welcome breakthrough, it must be viewed as a crucial first step on a clear road-map to a closer relationship with Europe. Starting with negotiating a bespoke UK-EU customs union, and committing to a youth mobility scheme for benefit of the next generation.’ By Sophie Wingate and David Hughes, Press Association Political Staff Press Association: News source: PA Copyright 2025 Alliance News Ltd. All Rights Reserved.
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