UK to rejoin EU Horizon programme through ‘bespoke new agreement’
The UK will rejoin the European Union’s flagship Horizon science programme after two years of absence post-Brexit, the government has confirmed.
Number 10 said the move would happen “through a bespoke new agreement with the EU”.
A spokesperson added Prime Minister Rishi Sunak secured “improved financial terms of association that are right for the UK and protect the taxpayer”.
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Mr Sunak said: “We have worked with our EU partners to make sure that this is right deal for the UK, unlocking unparalleled research opportunities, and also the right deal for British taxpayers.”
Scientists called the announcement “tremendous news”.
Horizon is a collaboration involving Europe’s leading research institutes and technology companies which sees EU member states contribute funds that are then allocated to individuals or organisations on merit.
The UK was negotiating a deal to remain in the €95.5bn programme, but talks stalled over Brexit-related disagreements such as Northern Ireland.
In the two years since the UK was removed, Downing Street has stepped in to match EU grant money lost.
However, scientists warned that UK researchers have been missing out on collaboration with colleagues in Europe.
Professor Paul Stewart, from the Academy of Medical Sciences said the return “marks a pivotal moment for UK science”.
“After a hiatus, the scientific community is celebrating the tremendous news that we are once more part of the EU’s flagship funding programme,” he said.
“Health research is an international endeavour, it relies on supporting the best ideas, but also on creating cross-border networks which is good news for the UK, Europe and the rest of the world.
“Association sends a very strong message that the UK is open for business and remains a prime destination to work on health research and innovation to improve lives.”
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The government said UK researchers can apply for grants and bid to take part in projects under the Horizon programme from today.
As well as Horizon the UK will join the EU’s space programme, Copernicus, but it will not take part in the bloc’s nuclear technology scheme, Euratom.
Deal ‘not mission creep back into EU’
The breakthrough comes after months of talks between London and Brussels.
It had been hoped that a British return to Horizon would follow in the wake of the Windsor Framework deal, agreed in February and designed to address concerns over post-Brexit arrangements in Northern Ireland.
Whitehall sources said in July a draft deal was with the prime minister – but Downing Street said a UK-based alternative known as Pioneer also remained an option because Mr Sunak was concerned about “value for money”.
Michelle Donelan, the secretary of state for science, denied the move was “mission creep back into the EU”.
She told Sky News: “This is fantastic news, not just for British scientists and researchers but also the British taxpayer.
“What we’re announcing today is a great deal, a deal that many said we won’t be able to get.”
Under the terms of the deal, the UK will not need to pay into the scheme for the two years it was absent with costs under the programme beginning again in January 2024.
The government also pointed to the inclusion of a so-called “clawback” mechanism, which will mean that the UK will be compensated if British scientists receive significantly less money than the UK puts into the programme.
Ms Donelan said the deal also includes an overperformance indicator, which means the UK won’t be penalised for overperforming “so we can really back our British scientists to achieve”.
Newly-appointed shadow science secretary Peter Kyle told broadcasters that ministers now need to “get on with it”.
“What we’re missing out on is two years’ worth of innovation,” the Labour MP said.
“Two years of global companies looking around the world for where to base their research centres and choosing other countries than Britain, because we are not part of Horizon… This is two years of wasted opportunity for us as a country.”
The UK’s jobless rate ticked up to 4.6% in April while payrolled employment has fallen sharply since, according to official figures covering the period when budget tax hikes on businesses came into effect.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said the new unemployment rate covering the three months to April was the highest since July 2021.
It had previously stood at 4.5% – a total of more than 1.6 million people.
At 4.6%, it is above the peak level predicted for this year, just in March, by the Office for Budget Responsibility.
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Figures from the taxman also highlighted by the ONS showed the number of people in payrolled employment during May fell by 109,000 – double April’s revised figure of 55,000 and the biggest monthly drop in five years.
The ONS Labour Force Survey data was the first to cover April’s rises in employer national insurance contributions and the national living wage – hikes to costs for businesses which lobby groups had warned would result in job losses, price rises and lower wage settlements.
The ONS figures showed average weekly earnings, excluding the effects of bonuses, over the three months to April were weaker, from a downwardly revised 5.5% to 5.2% year on year.
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Liz McKeown, ONS director of economic statistics, said: “There continues to be weakening in the labour market, with the number of people on payroll falling notably.
“Feedback from our vacancies survey suggests some firms may be holding back from recruiting new workers or replacing people when they move on.”
The ONS data piles more pressure on Chancellor Rachel Reeves, just a day after she confirmed her winter fuel U-turn would cost £1.25bn.
She has consistently defenced her budget, arguing the taxes on business were a one-off necessary evil to account for a £22bn “black hole” in the public finances inherited from the last government.
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Employment minister Alison McGovern said in response to the data: “Six months after we launched Get Britain Working, we are already seeing the benefits with economic activity at a record high, with 500,000 more people in employment since we entered office and real wages growing more since July than in the decade after 2010.
“People all over the country are benefiting from increased training opportunities and the newly launched Jobs and Careers Service will allow us to test new and innovative approaches to personalise employment support.”
Despite the wage figure easing, that 5.2% level remains comfortably ahead of the 3.5% rate of the pace of price growth – inflation.
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The curb to consumer spending power will be welcomed by the Bank of England as its rate-setters continue to fret that strong wage growth represents an inflation risk ahead.
The ONS figures did little to boost financial market expectations of a further rate cut next month.
LSEG data showed 90% of market participants believed there would be no no change – with just one further cut this year being fully priced in.
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