Studying abroad, ability to learn another language, facing quite a few challenges, trying to fit into a new cultural environment, enhancing my identity and appreciating my own heritage, the list is long and it is hard to put it into words, I know that I have benefited hugely from being able to study in Croatia and Italy.
Although I am often very critical of the Labour Government, I am actually pleased that they are looking into re-establishing the Erasmus+ scheme. I strongly disagree with quite a few opposition politicians e.g. Priti Patel, who calls it a “Brexit betrayal”.
Let just remind ourselves that before the EU Referendum, in 2018-19, the last year the scheme operated here, 18,300 British students studied in the EU, while 30,000 EU students came to the UK.
Interestingly, in 2024, over 65,000 people travelled to Poland for the Erasmus+ program. This figure primarily represents incoming students, but the Erasmus+ program in Poland in 2024 also included other types of beneficiaries such as learners, professors, teachers, trainers, youth workers, and young people. Approximately 15,000 Polish students leave the country every year for their studies abroad through the program. In March 2025, when the former Mayor of Welwyn Hatfield Frank Marsh and I visited Sycow, we were impressed not only with students’ ability to speak English, but also with school(s) willingness to cooperate with other educational institutions across Europe.
Is there a cost attached to this programme, if it goes ahead? Yes. The UK will pay £570 million for the 2027/28 academic year to re-join the scheme, a figure the government states is a 30% discount on the default price for non-EU states. Is it worth it, I wonder given all the other financial pressures? Many would argue, rightly, that the UK and Europe have much bigger problems than “trivial and irrelevant” learning programme.
It is worth adding that the Alan Turing Scheme, which replaced the Erasmus+ Programme, is currently allowing (apparently) pupils, learners and students to take up study or work placements in over 160 destinations across the world including Tanzania, Fiji, South Korea and Australia – alongside European destinations like Spain and France. However, the total funding pot was reduced to £78 million for the current year, leading to a record number of rejected applications from education providers. For example, the London School of Economics (LSE) received only 14% of the funding it requested, forcing it to use its own funds to support all disadvantaged students.
In conclusion and from a personal perspective, I am pleased that the government is looking to re-start the Erasmus+ scheme. I don’t see it as a “forced re-alignment” with the European Union, but a fantastic opportunity to advance life chances for young people in the UK. The programme will positively affect their lives, boost their employment, increase confidence and character building.
* Michal Siewniak is a Lib Dem activist and councillor for Handside ward, Welwyn Hatfield.
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5 Comments
I don’t think that the “Turing Scheme replaced Erasmus Plus” is quite fair.
As I understand it, it was non-EU vs EU, so an attempt at diversion, which turned out to be one more facet of the useless Conservative Headless Chicken Government.
My suggestion is that we simply need both, perhaps most importantly as a long-term, growing bulwark against the nativism which is now thoroughly embedded in the Right of our politics.
Erasmus; The vast majority of school kids had never heard about it until we left the EU.
It favoured children whose parents had the ability to top up the funding – all it ever was – was a middle class jolly in the European union.
Still, it’s who the progress left represent these days.
I studied overseas. There was no need for extra funding from non-existent wealthy relatives for two reasons. Firstly, the scheme was really well funded. Secondly, living in Italy was cheaper than the United Kingdom. Coping with a new language in an unfamiliar country was certainly not “a middle class jolly.”
As someone who supported Leave, I have to say that I can’t see anything wrong with voluntarily choosing to joining Erasmus or whatever other peripheral scheme the EU might want to set up. It’s not as if these might mean we have to use the euro, stick to EU imposed limits on our fiscal policy, or have to abide by EU imposed law.
It would be better though if ex Remainers didn’t create opposition, where none might previously have existed, by proclaiming that these are steps towards our rejoining the EU. We’ll have to see how this works out but my expectation is that they won’t be any time soon.
@ Lee_Thacker,
“Coping with a new language in an unfamiliar country was certainly not ‘a middle class jolly.’ ”
Though it’s probably not quite as tough as joining the French Foreign Legion or even working as a Gastarbeiter in a German factory. If we do want to add an element of working class reality to the scheme maybe we could allow working class youngsters to spend part of their apprenticeship/training as plumbers, joiners, machinists, nurses or whatever, in the EU.