On Thursday 22 October, during a plenary session in Strasbourg, the European Parliament adopted its position on the Erasmus+ programme for 2028-2034. The text, which received 454 votes in favour, 34 against, and 93 abstentions, calls for the programme’s budget to be increased to €47.39 billion, surpassing the European Commission’s proposal of €40.8 billion (see EUROPE 13683/5).
The position also advocates adjusting grants to reflect the cost of living in host cities, expanding participation to include amateur athletes and individuals in vocational education and training, and integrating the European Solidarity Corps.
Members of the European Parliament also want to facilitate access to the programme for candidate countries and expand exchanges with the United Kingdom and Switzerland. Several amendments tabled by the Patriots for Europe (PfE) and Europe of Sovereign Nations (ESN) groups were rejected. Their proposals included requiring third countries participating in Erasmus+ to readmit their own nationals at the request of Member States and excluding certain organisations from EU funding.
The Parliament also approved referring the file to the Committee on Culture and Education (CULT), which will be responsible for future negotiations with the Council of the European Union.
Access the adopted text here: https://aeur.eu/f/o2a (Original version in French by Nithya Paquiry)