UK ready to launch ‘bold Plan B’ after taking ‘one last throw of dice’ with EU – EXCLUSIVE

Brexit: Johnson says UK has ‘opportunity to expand horizons’

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Under the Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA), the UK was supposed to take part in the £80billion Horizon Europe programme, a flagship innovation project that lets UK researchers access prestigious European grants. But the EU told Britain it can no longer participate until the Northern Ireland Protocol feud is resolved. The UK has also been blocked from accessing Euratom, a nuclear programme, and Copernicus, due to the Brexit dispute.

With the back-and-forth dragging on for over 18 months, the UK has finally had enough and is launching “formal consultations” – a mechanism under the TCA – in a bid to end the delay.

Speaking exclusively to Express.co.uk, former Conservative Party leader Sir Iain Duncan Smith said the legal action is “one last throw of the dice” before the UK launches its “Plan B” for Horizon Europe.

Sir Iain said: “The Government has already offered up a significant amount of money for an alternative and many scientists have now said ‘let’s get on with it’.

“But this is one last throw of the dice to try and get the European Union to stop messing around and stick by the rules.

“Horizon has nothing to do with the dispute over the Northern Ireland Protocol, absolutely nothing.

“And Horizon includes countries that are not part of the EU. Let’s get on with it and tell the world that we tried.

“If they don’t want anything to do with it, then it shows the EU up in a bad light.”

Devised by former science minister George Freeman, the “bold Plan B” for Horizon Europe, which anticipates that they might never allow Britain back into the programme, will ensure that scientists promised European grants will still receive funding.

Although Horizon membership is the preferred outcome, many scientists are fed up with being stuck in limbo as they needlessly get dragged into the Brexit feud as collateral damage.

To put an end to that uncertainty, Mr Freeman’s global masterplan will not only cover the costs of new and existing fellowship schemes but will also see the setting up of a “talent and research stabilisation fund”.

This will help to prop up the income of universities that would be especially hard hit by the loss of those European funds.

It also looks set to involve teaming up with science and innovation powerhouses like our Five Eyes (Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the US) partners, as well as countries like Japan.

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Speaking exclusively to Express.co.uk, Mr Freeman said: Science, Technology and Innovation are fundamental to the UK’s growth, investment, productivity and competitiveness.

“Horizon, Euratom and Copernicus are key research collaboration programs in which we negotiated & agreed to remain in the Brexit Agreement the prime minister signed in January 2020.

“If the EU continue to block us because of the Northern Ireland Protocol we must invest at least the same budget in a big bold prestigious alternative global UK research Program open to European and global partners to tackle big global research challenges.”

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