UK Joins EU's Horizon and Copernicus Science Programs

• 11 Sep 2023

On 7^th September, 2023, Britain announced its decision to participate in the European Union's flagship Horizon science research program and the Copernicus earth observation program. However, it declined to join the Euratom nuclear research initiative.

Key Points

• EU's Scientific Research and Innovation Program: Horizon Europe is the European Union's primary funding program for scientific research and innovation, boasting a budget of 95.5 billion euros ($102.3 billion).
• Five Main Missions: The program focuses on five main missions, including adapting to climate change, creating climate-neutral cities, combating cancer, and restoring oceans and soil.
• Costs Incurred: Britain has agreed to cover costs starting from January 2024, as it did not contribute financially during the period when UK researchers were excluded, starting from 2021.
• Clawback Mechanism: A new automatic clawback mechanism ensures that the UK will be compensated if UK scientists receive significantly less funding than the UK contributes to the program.
• EU's Earth Observation Component: Copernicus, formerly known as GMES (Global Monitoring for Environment and Security), is part of the EU's Space program and focuses on Earth observation.
• Data Gathering: It collects data from satellites and other measurement systems to monitor climate changes, land use shifts, ocean information, and atmospheric conditions such as air quality.
• Benefits for Britain: Britain's association with Copernicus will provide its earth observation sector with access to valuable data for early flood and fire warnings, as well as the opportunity to bid on contracts that had been inaccessible for three years.
• Complementary to Horizon Europe: Euratom Research and Training program is described by the EU as a complementary funding program to Horizon Europe, concentrating on nuclear research and innovation, using similar instruments and participation rules.
• Britain Opts Out: Britain has chosen not to participate in Euratom, citing its preference for pursuing a domestic fusion energy strategy instead. This decision aligns with the preferences of the UK fusion sector.