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Five years after the United Kingdom left the European Union and thus its Erasmus+ youth program, efforts are underway to re-establish youth mobility between the two.
The EU has floated a plan to open pathways for young people to spend longer periods of time overseas without necessarily being strictly tied to a job, educational program or training scheme. However, while the minority Liberal Democrats party back the initiative, the Labour government says the UK currently has no plans to rejoin the program.
Laurence Farreng is a French MEP with the centrist Renew Europe Group. She says the political arguing that still surrounds Brexit – especially on the issue of migration – contributes a major reason for the resistance in London.
"I think that since the UK left the European Union, immigration has increased. I think it is a subject that is politically manipulated, instrumentalized," she tells CGTN. "Erasmus+, yes, it is about mobility, young people can arrive in the country but I think some companies would be very happy to have young Europeans back."
Politics vs education?
As lawmakers in Brussels look for ways to boost youth mobility on either side of the Channel, rejoining the EU's Erasmus+ program is another option that has been considered. More than 15 million people have participated in the Erasmus+ program since it launched in 1987 but London has dismissed the idea of reintegrating.
Recent polling by Politico found that 51 percent of British voters were in favour of rejoining the European student exchange program, with only 15 percent opposing the idea.
The University of Ghent, in Belgium, says the impact of the UK's decision to leave Erasmus+ is still being felt. The university still has arrangements with 22 UK universities but student participation is half of what it once was.
Students' ability to move around Europe has been affected. /CGTN
While demand remains robust, officials at the university say rising costs and burdensome administrative processes are barriers for many students. Students at the university are already applying for exchanges scheduled for September and even February 2026.
"Administrative steps have increased and have made it increasingly difficult for students to really make sure that this is in place before they leave for the UK," says Frederik De Decker, the Head of Ghent University's International Relations Office. "Specifically for internships, these steps have turned out to be very complicated and in a lot of cases, unfeasible for students."
Turing: The new Erasmus?
The UK replaced Erasmus+ with its own system called Turing in 2021, boasting exchanges around the world and not just in Europe. For the 2024-25 academic year, the program is offering roughly $140 million for overseas educational placements.
But Jude Waites, President of Erasmus Student Network UK, says the program has led to increased bureaucracy for universities and a lack of opportunity for European students.
"What Turing does is whilst allowing that kind of outgoing study, it doesn't fund incoming study," he explains. "And that leads to, from our perspective, a tension between students and universities – obviously because there's less places – and also between university and university."
There's an appetite from some lawmakers in both London and Brussels to improve youth mobility, but for now at least, the UK's participation in Erasmus+ is consigned to the history books.