Politics

Nandy Defends Linking Remembrance Sunday to Erasmus+ Amid Conservative Criticism

By Today News Hours Editorial Desk

Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy has denied accusations that she politicised Remembrance Sunday by associating the day with the UK’s return to the European Union’s Erasmus+ scheme. Her department announced on Saturday that “as we mark Remembrance Sunday, Erasmus+ will give a new generation the chance to build connections across Europe.” The statement prompted backlash from Conservatives, who said veterans did not fight for a student exchange scheme and accused Nandy of making an “EU membership pitch.” Nandy said she was “horrified” by the Tory response and insisted the expanded EU scheme for study and work would help young Britons recognise wartime sacrifice. The UK will rejoin Erasmus+ in January, six years after leaving as part of the Brexit deal. In a press release, Nandy wrote: “As we remember the immense courage of those who served our country, we honour them by building the best opportunities for the next generation through closeness and collaboration with our allies.” Conservative Party chairman Kevin Hollinrake called the comments “tone deaf and frankly shameful” and urged Nandy to apologise, arguing that the bonds veterans forged run “far deeper” than Erasmus. Reform leader Nigel Farage told the BBC that using Remembrance Sunday to announce the scheme was “very, very poor taste.” Peter Sharples, chief executive of the Veterans Institute, told The Telegraph that people should “just honour the fallen” on Remembrance Sunday rather than discuss “party political matters.” Asked about the row on the BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg programme, Nandy stood by her remarks, saying: “It was Winston Churchill after the Second World War who talked about extending the hand of friendship across Europe and making sure that we honoured the legacy of that generation.” She added that after Brexit “we closed off opportunities for young people from this country to understand not just the impact that generation made here in the UK, but the way in which they went off and fought for the freedom of people across Europe.” When asked whether she had chosen Remembrance Sunday to promote the new EU deal, Nandy said she was “not choosing today or any day actually to promote a deal with the EU.” She explained that linking the day to the cultural benefits of the scheme was common sense. The UK is paying £570 million to join the expanded Erasmus+ scheme, a 30 % discount, and will offer free year‑abroad placements for UK university students and their European peers, as well as cultural exchanges. Free train passes will be available for 18‑year‑olds to visit EU countries alone or with up to five friends, and youth groups will be able to do short exchanges in other countries, with a focus on areas of the UK that have been less engaged with Erasmus, such as the north of England and the Midlands. Applications will open later this month. Farage described Erasmus as a “terrible scheme” and “wildly expensive” compared to the Turing Scheme introduced in 2021, and criticised ongoing negotiations between the UK and the EU for a new youth mobility scheme ahead of a major summit on 20 November. Prime Minister Andy Burnham has said he wants an “honest discussion” about the prospect of returning to free movement between the UK and EU, while former Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier warned that the UK cannot “cherry‑pick” which elements of the single market it subscribes to. Nandy said on Sunday that most of the benefits of Brexit promised in 2016 “have not been realised” and that “there are trade‑offs and choices to be made” on Britain’s future relationship with the EU.