EU Parliament backs €7bn Erasmus+ budget increase
The European Parliament has voted to seek a €7 billion increase for the Erasmus+ student exchange programme, defying calls from frugal EU capitals for deep cuts. MEPs in Strasbourg approved the proposal with 454 votes in favour, 93 against and 34 abstentions, with opposition coming mostly from right-wing parties. The vote on Thursday sets the Parliament’s position for negotiations on the EU’s next long-term budget, where some member states are pushing for €150 billion in cuts to the Commission’s draft. Polish centre-right MEP Bogdan Zdrojewski, the rapporteur on the file, described the increase as a “slight increase” that would still open opportunities for thousands of people.
Expanding access and scope
Erasmus+ enables young people to study, live and work abroad in the 27 EU states and 160 associate countries. Since its start, some 17 million people have taken part, and the Commission has long used the programme as a flagship for the EU’s positive image. The UK is set to rejoin in 2027, giving EU students again the chance to spend a semester at British universities.
MEPs also want to expand Erasmus+ to more vocational training and to people of all ages. “Erasmus+ will be a programme for Europeans no matter what age, what stage of life,” Zdrojewski said. He added that students from poorer homes should receive more support to live in expensive cities abroad.
In 2023, 15 percent of participants had fewer opportunities to travel, up from 10 percent two years earlier. German socialist MEP Sabrina Repp argued that “far too often, it is still the parents’ financial situation that determines who can take part in Erasmus+ and who cannot,” and that working students often cannot afford to quit their jobs to go abroad. “That is precisely what we must change,” she said. Some 83 percent of participants say they gained professional skills that helped them in the labour market. Slovak liberal MEP Lucia Yar stressed that more funding is needed to make the programme’s opportunities available more widely.
