The European Parliament has expressed support for calls for Switzerland’s membership in the EU’s student exchange program Erasmus+
Media reports say that the Culture and Education committee is preparing an opinion to include in a Parliament report on the EU and Switzerland relations, which indicates the benefits Switzerland’s association with Erasmus brings to both sides.
Members of the Parliament have voiced concerns about students, claiming that politics should not interfere with education. For many years, Swiss and international students have advocated for full membership of Switzerland to Erasmus. Students across Europe have also been vocal about the matter.
In 2020, a petition from the Swiss Student Union collected more than 10,000 signatures, demanding the reintegration of Switzerland into the program .
Earlier this year, the European Students’ Union (ESU) called on the EU to differentiate politics from education, pointing out that students should not be used as “bargaining chips.”
In a press release issued on February 16, ESU said that Switzerland’s withdrawal from the Erasmus program harmed equal opportunities for youngsters in Switzerland compared to their European counterparts.
“It is crucial to promote mobility between Europe and the rest of the world without forgetting the immediate neighbourhood: that is why establishing a framework of mobility cooperation Switzerland is paramount, and that needs to be decoupled from non-related political negotiations: students cannot be used as bargaining chips,” the statement also noted.
The European Students’ Union highlighted figures showing that the lack of participation in Erasmus has cost Switzerland with many projects in which it could not take part between 2014 and 2020.
Negotiations on a cooperation framework between Switzerland and the EU fell apart in 2020. The latter did not oppose Switzerland’s association to the program but insisted it should not happen until both sides resolved tension in the relationship.
EU-Swiss relations in this regard worsened after the latter withdrew from negotiations on the framework.
Switzerland has not been a full member of the Erasmus program since 2014 due to its vote in favour of an anti-immigration move against the free movement agreement with the EU. Nonetheless, it remained a partner country of the program.
However, since then, Switzerland has launched its program as an interim solution, funding thousands of exchanges for Swiss and EU students.