How the East of England benefits from the EU... Research and education

The text below has been reproduced from the Liberal Democrats' national website at http://www.libdems.org.uk/europe-eengland

Being #INtogether gives universities and businesses in the UK access to EU's Horizon 2020, the largest international research programme in the world. The East of England is one of Europe's largest beneficiaries of EU science funding, driving innovation and jobs and allowing our best minds to work together on tackling shared challenges.

• From 2007 to 2013, the East of England received over £707m in EU research funds.
• The region is expected to receive another £1bn from now until 2020
• Between 2007 and 2014, over 3080 students from universities in the East of England benefitted from the EU's Erasmus programme to work and study abroad. Grants for UK students are the highest in the EU and can be as much as €400 per month.
• It is also estimated that the EU students studying in the East of England contribute over £248m to the local economy every year.

Case studies

• In 2016, the University of Cambridge received £2.9m for its part in a project dedicated to the development of graphene technology which can be used in the provision of mass scale super-fast broadband.
  
• The University of Cambridge received £1.8m for research into the triggers of inflammatory bowel diseases. It is hoped this will dramatically improve treatment of conditions such as Crohn's disease.
  
• In 2010, the University of Hertfordshire was awarded a grant worth £1.1m to assess and quantify the health impacts of transport related air pollution. The resulting research is central to developing public health policies in Europe.
  
• In 2014, the University of East Anglia received £1.85m research how gold could be used to maximise energy efficiency and competitiveness while minimising waste and environmental impact of chemical processes.