European Council commits to increase in funding for Erasmus for All

Heads of State at the European Council have committed to an increase in funding for the Erasmus for All programme as part of the EU Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) budget negotiated in Brussels on 8 February.

The negotiations for the whole EU budget running from 2014 – 2020 , saw, for the first time, a proposed cut of over 3% for the seven year period. However, the importance of investing in education and training for future growth and jobs was clear, with a budget increase agreed for the future funding programme currently known as Erasmus for All. The European Council recognises the future programme as having high potential to contribute to the objectives of the EU 2020 strategy.

The EU budget must now be approved by the European Parliament for it to become law. MEPs are expected to vote within three months and may be given the option to vote anonymously, a procedure rarely used in the European Parliament, which could potentially affect it becoming law.

The Erasmus for All proposal itself is still under negotiation. The current Irish Presidency has core responsibility for reaching an agreement on the future funding programme within its six month term which ends in June this year.

Keep up to date and follow progress on the budget #EUbudget and Erasmus for All at @llpUKecorys

About me

I’m Rebecca Fothergill and I am part of the Communications team here at Ecorys. I coordinate activities on our national thematic networks which are forums for engaging practitioners and policymakers on the cross cutting themes of the LLP. I have an interest in European education and employment policy, in particular the equality of opportunities. I coordinated the Inclusion network, led by Ecorys, which will help to make the current LLP and future EU education and training programme more accessible.