MEPs voted overwhelmingly in favour of amendments tabled by MEP Peter Agius, aimed at opening up more European opportunities for young people from Malta and Gozo to benefit from the Erasmus+ programme, the European People's Party said Thursday.
"The vote in favour of the changes I requested for the benefit of Maltese young people, supported by 454 MEPs from across the political spectrum, is further proof that we can change Europe to adapt it to the needs of citizens in Malta and Gozo. All we need to do is try, consistently and persistently.
"Living on islands may be beautiful, but it comes at a cost. We must make Europe aware of that cost and ensure that safeguards are included in EU legislation. In this case, we must open up more Erasmus+ opportunities for young people living on islands to compensate for the disadvantages of insularity and ensure that travel to and from islands is not penalised by price caps linked to the European Green Deal."
The Erasmus+ programme now includes not only the well-known three- to five-month university study placements abroad, but also educational group visits and tailor-made small-group exchanges in the fields of sport, culture and education.
Importantly, the programme also includes DiscoverEU free travel passes for 18-year-olds, as well as the European Solidarity Corps initiative, which allows NGOs and civil society organisations to provide or request assistance in emergencies at national level or engage in community work initiatives.
The European Parliament's position on the new Erasmus+ Regulation now incorporates Agius' proposals for Malta, recognising insularity as a barrier to student mobility and calling for additional resources for students from islands.
The proposed Regulation also includes wording aimed at securing full reimbursement of travel costs for students from islands, with specific reference to the "additional cost of travel for insular regions".
Agius' amendments seek to remove unfair caps on travel costs for those travelling to and from islands. His initiative follows complaints from several Maltese Erasmus+ participants that the programme covered only part of their expenses because they could not benefit from 'green travel' provisions, which favour train and bus connections that are not available for travel to and from Malta.
"We are changing an important EU law to open up more opportunities for Maltese young people. I took this initiative after being contacted by Maltese Erasmus+ participants who complained about caps on travel costs and the limited number of opportunities available to them.
"I acted on their needs at the right time. This shows that Europe is not a static entity we can only complain about, but a dynamic project that can change to adapt to our needs when we take action.
"I now call on all governments to support Parliament's position so that the new Erasmus+ programme can be put in place as early as 2028," concluded Agius.