Effect on funding for Wales of the UK leaving the EU

Summary

Per head, wales receives more funding from the EU than the UK does. Wales has been allocated around €5 billion from the EU for the period 2014 – 2020: €3 billion from the European Structural and Investment Funds and €2 billion for providing direct support for farmers under the Common Agricultural Policy. This funding is allocated directly to the Welsh Government to manage.

Organisations in Wales can also bid directly to the European Commission for funding from other programmes such as Horizon 2020, which provides funding for research and innovation.

Following the result of the EU referendum held on 23 June 2016, the UK Treasury has provided guarantees for EU funded projects signed before the UK leaves the EU. The Treasury has also guaranteed that the agricultural sector in Wales will receive the level of funding it was expecting from the EU during 2014–2020.

The UK’s, and consequently Wales’ access to EU funding programmes will be subject to negotiations during the EU withdrawal process. It is possible that Wales may still receive funding from certain EU programmes even after the UK has left the EU. Indeed, some programmes already include countries that are not EU member states. However, the programmes that are particularly significant for Wales are generally for EU member states only.

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