Britain announced on Thursday that it would rejoin the EU’s premier Horizon science research program, putting an end to a two-year spat with the EU over science funding following the Brexit vote.
British scientists hailed the accord, which eliminates the EU’s Euratom the nuclear research program and suggests an additional boost in bilateral ties just seven months after a trade dispute was settled.
In a statement, the office of Rishi Sunak, the prime minister, said that he had obtained “bettered financial conditions of cooperation” for the Horizon project.
Sunak told journalists, “We have taken the opportunity to negotiate the proper contract for the UK, a unique deal, that works in our favor. It serves the interests of both British taxpayers and our researchers and scientists, according to the statement.
Britain would join the European earth-observing program Copernicus, according to Sunak’s office, but not the EU’s Euratom program, instead opting out of its own fusion energy strategy. According to European Commission Chairwoman Ursula von der Leyen, “today’s political accord on the UK’s involvement in the Horizon Europe project & Copernicus will bolster science across the entire Europe.”
Britain gained access to a number of EU research and development programs, notably Horizon, the European Union’s largest financing program for academics with a yearly budget of 95.5 billion euro ($102 billion), as part of the Brexit trade agreement concluded at the end of 2020.
The EU refused to let Britain join because of a disagreement over the post-Brexit trade policies regulating the British county of Northern Ireland (NI), but after that disagreement was settled in February, Britain was able to rejoin Horizon Europe.
After missing the first two years of the seven-year program, England was concerned about the amount it had to pay to rejoin. As a result, it had guaranteed financing for UK applications to The horizon while negotiations were ongoing.
Britain won’t be required to pay under the terms of the deal for the period that it was excluded, although a “clawback” provision will pay it back if UK researchers receive much less funding than the country’s contribution.
According to a joint statement from the UK and the European Commission, “today’s arrangement in general marks an additional step ahead for the EU and UK to collaborate together to foster a spirit of mutually beneficial cooperation on matters of shared interest.”
Researchers expressing hope that collaborations with European peers might once again flourish after the unavoidable break, with institutions including the University of Oxford and London’s Imperial College stating that the agreement will improve partnerships on some of the world’s most important problems.
Paul Nurse, the director of the Sir Francis Crick Institute, said: “I am delighted that it has finally occurred that collaborations with EU scientists may continue. “This is a crucial step in restoring and enhancing our scientific standing worldwide.”