The European Commission said on Wednesday it had “taken note” of Britain’s announcement that it had launched a dispute resolution procedure with the European Union to gain access to the bloc’s scientific research programs after Brexit.
“The Commission takes note of the UK’s request for consultation and will follow up on it in accordance with the applicable rules, as set out in the Trade and Cooperation Agreement,” said Daniel Ferrie, spokesman for the European Commission.
Under a trade deal signed at the end of 2020, the UK negotiated access to a number of European Union science and innovation programmes, including Horizon Europe, a €95.5bn ($97bn) program offering grants and projects to researchers.
But the UK says that, 18 months later, the EU has still not finalized access to Horizon, to Copernicus, the Earth observation program on climate change, to Euratom, the nuclear research programme, and to services such as the surveillance and space tracking.
Both sides have claimed that investigative cooperation would be mutually beneficial, but relations have been aggravated by part of the Brexit divorce deal regulating trade with Northern Ireland, prompting the EU to launch proceedings judicial.