CORRECTION: Cyprus presidency presents plan for 2028-2034 budget with 4% cuts for Horizon and Erasmus+

Cyprus, which holds the presidency of the EU's Council of Ministers until the end of June, has presented a draft compromise for the Union's budget for 2028-2034 with a 4% cut in funding for the Horizon Europe research programme and the Erasmus+ mobility scheme, compared to the Commission's proposal.

The draft, which was published on 11/06/2026, foresees €167.880 billion for the next research framework programme (FP10), compared to the €175bn the European Commission proposed in July 2025.

The total for Horizon is broken down as follows:
• Excellent Science (Pillar 1) 42.281bn;
• Competitiveness and Society (Pillar 2) 72.478bn;
• Innovation (Pillar 3) 37.206bn;
• European Research Area (ERA) (Pillar 4) 15.600bn, of which widening 5.167bn.


The Cyprus presidency has proposed a total of €40.827bn for Erasmus+, 4% lower than the €41bn the Commission had proposed.

The draft compromise will be discussed by ministers for European affairs at their meeting on 16/06/2026 and then by EU leaders at their summit two days later.

In July 2025, the Commission proposed the following breakdown for…