UK Government extended Horizon Europe (incl. European Innovation Council) financial safety guarantees in 2023

On 19 December 2022, the UK Government officially announced further extension to the Horizon Europe Guarantee scheme (originally launched in November 2021), that also includes European Innovation Council, to support UK applicants in Horizon Europe programmes. The extension will ensure that eligible, successful UK applicants will continue to be guaranteed funding, supporting them to continue their important work in research and innovation.

The guarantee will be in place to cover all Horizon Europe calls that close on or before 31 March 2023. Eligible, successful applicants to Horizon Europe will receive the full value of their funding at their UK host institution for the lifetime of their grant.

Successful awardees do not need to leave the UK to receive this funding, which will provide reassurance for future collaborations, and support UK researchers whether association is confirmed, or otherwise.

The announcement follows Science Minister Freeman’s launch of the UK International Science Partnerships Fund in Japan this last week, in a speech setting out the UK’s commitment to international research, and the UK’s Science Superpower mission. Minister Freeman outlined the ambition to better harness UK science for long term global security and sustainability, by tackling the most pressing global challenges of climate change, sustainable agricultural development, biosecurity, and pandemic prevention.

The government continues to push for Association to EU programmes, but time is running out. The government’s priority is to support the UK’s research and development sector during the ongoing period of uncertainty, and to ensure strong international collaboration opportunities for UK research.

Earlier this year the government set out details of transitional measures which will be implemented in the event that association is no longer possible. Further details of these plans will be published shortly. The publication confirmed that transitional measures would pick up where the current guarantee has left off, so there will be no funding gap, and no eligible successful applications would go unsupported.

Details regarding the scope and terms of the extension are available on the United Kingdom Research and Innovation (UKRI) website.

Source: UK Government (2022)