Agreement reached for full access in EU Research and Innovation programmes
Minister for Higher Education Graeme Dey has welcomed the ratification of the agreement for UK participation in EU programmes, Horizon Europe and Copernicus.
The Scottish Government has always believed full association to the Horizon Europe programme was the best outcome for Scotland in the circumstances, and we have continued to work with our EU partners to tackle challenges in areas of mutual interest, despite the impacts of Brexit causing needless delays and uncertainty to the Research and Innovation sector.
GRAEME
We welcome this formalisation of the agreement for association to EU programmes, Horizon Europe and Copernicus. Horizon Europe is globally unparalleled and Scotland has benefited greatly from the scope, scale and prestige of this €95.5 billion European Research & Innovation Framework programme.
The full benefits for Scotland can only be realised by EU membership, as set out in our paper Building a New Scotland EU paper, in conjunction with other advantages such as freedom of movement for citizens.
However, there is an opportunity to maximise our participation in Horizon Europe and continue to work with the research and innovation sector in Scotland and beyond to reinforce our valuable relationships.
Background
Scottish researchers have continued to work with EU partners on key global challenges, including tidal energy, sustainable ocean management, preventing Alzheimer’s disease, developing technologies to support space satellites, and designing antibodies to help diagnose and treat Covid-19.
In Horizon Europe’s predecessor, Horizon 2020, Scotland collaborated with over 150 countries and secured around 11% of the UK’s overall funding with 8% of the population share.
