EUA welcomes commitment to education, research and innovation in proposal for EU’s next long-term budget

This decision reaffirms the EU’s recognition of education, research and innovation as cornerstones of Europe's future and a strategic investment in its prosperity, resilience and global competitiveness, while promoting shared European values.

In its initial reaction, EUA highlights that the proposed doubling of the Horizon Europe budget to €175 billion sends a strong signal of support for research and innovation. However, proposed alignment with the European Competitiveness Fund, including shared governance and a single rulebook, raises concerns about preserving its autonomy.

Similarly, EUA welcomes the proposed continuation of Erasmus+ as a stand-alone, comprehensive programme, combining European and international mobility and cooperation, and including the European Universities Initiative. Despite the welcome increase in the proposed budget for Erasmus+ to €40.8 billion, questions remain about the programme’s ability to fund longstanding activities and new policy priorities due to factors such as inflation. Therefore, EUA calls on policy makers to further increase the budget for Erasmus+ to enable the programme to boost Europe’s resilience and competitiveness.  

Finally, EUA supports the Commission’s efforts to simplify access to funding, reduce administrative burden and preserve the core structures and values of both programmes. However, the Association reiterates its concerns regarding the proposed use of lump sum funding as the default model and calls for a model reflecting the diversity of higher education and research practices and institutions across Europe.

Commenting on the European Commission’s proposals, EUA Secretary General Amanda Crowfoot stressed that:

“It is very encouraging to see that Horizon Europe and Erasmus+ will continue as stand-alone programmes, and that the core elements that define their success will be preserved.

The proposed increase in Horizon’s Europe budget demonstrates strong support for research and innovation’s essential role in shaping Europe’s future.

For Erasmus+, the picture is less clear. We need more information on how the budget will be allocated across sectors and actions, and how synergies with other EU funding instruments will be implemented.”

Read EUA’s full reaction:

Investing in strategic drivers of Europe's prosperity, resilience and global competitiveness

What next?

With the European Commission’s draft now on the table, the legislative phase begins. The Council of the EU, which represents the governments of member states, will now review and amend the proposal before sending it to the European Parliament.

The Parliament can approve, reject or suggest changes within 42 days. Should the Council reject these, a Conciliation Committee will be formed to reach a joint text. If an agreement is reached, both the Council and the Parliament must approve it within 14 days.

In parallel, preparations for negotiations on the proposals for a wide range of EU programmes, including Horizon Europe and Erasmus+, will begin, with interinstitutional discussions expected to start as early as September. The full adoption of the next MFF is estimated to take around two years, reflecting both the complexity of the process and the time required to reach agreement among EU institutions.

As for EUA, following this initial statement the Association will now conduct in-depth analysis of each proposal, to be published in the coming months. Looking ahead, EUA will continue to engage actively with EU institutions and stakeholders throughout the negotiation process to help ensure that the final programmes remain ambitious, inclusive and impactful for universities and society across Europe.