FORMER MP and MEP Alyn Smith has called for the Scottish Government to continue funding for scholarships to the College of Europe.
In his Sunday National column, Smith, alongside students Paul Anderson, Liam McLaughlin and Annie Wenn, outline that without necessary funding from government, the costs of studying at the college will deter many students from attending. They argue that this would hamper Scotland’s talent pool.
In 2010, the Conservative UK Government cut funding of 28 places to two. Currently, only civil servants get UK Government funding to study at the College.
The Scottish Government maintained funding for three places a year but there are now fears that these scholarships face being scrapped.
Smith and the College of Europe students write: “With independence, there will be a pressing need for diplomats, civil servants and politicians with a thorough grounding not only in theoretical aspects of the EU but in its day-to-day processes and implementing the acquis communautaire – the body of EU legislation which each aspiring Member State needs to implement.
“Considering all the above, it is deeply sad to hear that these scholarships might be scrapped by the Scottish Government.”
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The College of Europe provides master’s degree level courses focused exclusively on European and EU studies in law, politics, history or economics, and trains nearly 500 students studying from across the EU, its neighbours and beyond. Tuition fees and boarding are between €27,000 to €29,000.
The college develops diplomats, politicians and academics with an understanding of the EU in the new member states, but with places open to Western European students also.
Smith argues that expertise gained far outweighs the cost of the scholarships, “For Scotland’s interests, it surely makes sense to think again because once they’re gone, any political will to re-establish them just won’t be there.
“The EU is set to only become more important in our day-to-day lives as Brexit Britain continues its slow decline. Meanwhile, in the EU, enlargement is on the agenda and will see it go from strength to strength and the Scottish Government has the right policy and right ambition: independence in Europe.”
The College of Europe was established following the 1948 Congress of Europe in The Hague to promote “a spirit of solidarity and mutual understanding between all the nations of Western Europe and to provide elite training to individuals who will uphold these values” and “to train an elite of young executives for Europe”.
You can read Alyn’s full column in tomorrow’s Sunday National.
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