Rishi Sunak says he’s struck the ‘right deal’ as Britain rejoins the EU’s £85billion flagship Horizon science scheme with ‘clawback mechanism’ to allow a ‘rebate’ if it’s not value for money
Rishi Sunak today hailed the ‘right deal for British taxpayers’ as it was confirmed the UK is rejoining the EU’s flagship £85billion science research programme.
British scientists had previously been frozen out of the Horizon scheme for two years amid the dispute between London and Brussels over post-Brexit rules for Northern Ireland.
But the UK will return to membership of the programme under a ‘bespoke deal’ signed by the Prime Minister, it was announced this morning.
There will be a £2billion a year cost for British membership, but Cabinet minister Michelle Donelan insisted the UK would not be forced to stump up for the years it was absent from the scheme.
She also revealed there would be a ‘clawback mechanism’ which would effectively give Britain a ‘rebate’ on financial contributions if ‘we weren’t getting as much out of it as we were putting in’.
Rishi Sunak today hailed the ‘right deal for British taxpayers’ as it was confirmed the UK is rejoining the EU’s flagship £85billion science research programme
British scientists had previously been frozen out of the Horizon scheme for two years amid the dispute between London and Brussels over post-Brexit rules for Northern Ireland
Mr Sunak’s signing of the Windsor Framework on Northern Ireland in February, which he struck with the EU’s Ursula von der Leyen, had paved the way Britain to rejoin Horizon
Mr Sunak’s signing of the Windsor Framework on Northern Ireland in February had paved the way Britain to rejoin Horizon, but the UK’s re-entry had continued to be held up by tensions over the amount it was expected to pay.
After finally sealing a deal with Brussels in a call with EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen yesterday, the PM confirmed an agreement today.
Researchers based in the UK can now once again apply for grants to take part in the collaboration programme, as well as the Copernicus scheme.
But Britain will not take part in the bloc’s nuclear technology scheme, Euratom.
Mr Sunak said: ‘Innovation has long been the foundation for prosperity in the UK, from the breakthroughs improving healthcare to the technological advances growing our economy.
‘With a wealth of expertise and experience to bring to the global stage, we have delivered a deal that enables UK scientists to confidently take part in the world’s largest research collaboration programme – Horizon Europe.
‘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.’
Ms von der Leyen said: ‘The EU and UK are key strategic partners and allies, and today’s agreement proves that point.
‘We will continue to be at the forefront of global science and research.’
Ms Donelan, the Science, Innovation and Technology Secretary, said the conclusion of ‘intense’ negotiations over British re-entry to Horizon would ‘benefit’ scientists and researchers and ‘actually produce more jobs’.
‘We’re not paying for the years we weren’t associated for,’ she told Times Radio.
‘Also, we’ve got a clawback mechanism, which means that if there was a situation where we weren’t getting as much out of it as we were putting in, the clawback mechanism would kick in and we could in effect get a rebate.
‘We’re also able to overperform and exceed expectations as part of our deal, which not all associate members get.
‘In fact we’ve got the most generous deal in that sense of any third party country.’
The deal was also welcomed by scientists after years of warnings that UK researchers have been missing out on collaboration with colleagues in the EU.
Horizon is a collaboration involving Europe’s leading research institutes and technology companies.
EU member states contribute funds, which are then allocated to individuals or organisations on merit to explore subjects such as climate change, medical advances and artificial intelligence.
Peter Kyle, Labour’s shadow science secretary, said Britain had been ‘missing out on is two years’ worth of innovation’ due to its absence from the scheme.
‘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,’ he added.
Liberal Democrat MP Layla Moran, the party’s foreign affairs spokesperson, said: ‘This is welcome news but it is long overdue.
‘It is a tragedy that so much unnecessary damage was done to our scientists and researchers thanks to the Conservatives’ botched deal with Europe.
‘The Government’s dither and delay means scientists will have missed out on vital funding and projects.
This announcement won’t fix that damage – but it finally offers a positive step forward. It’s about time.
‘With this step forward, the Government must look to extend this cooperation to other schemes such as Erasmus and restore these obvious benefits to all those in the UK.’
Source: Read Full Article