At the beginning of this week, the 28 Commissioners unanimously agreed to spare both research and the Erasmus programme from spending cuts in the 2020s, as they met during a MFF Conference on the future of the EU budget. German commissioner Oettinger said that there might even be an increase in the spending for research. However, all other EU programmes will be cut, and according to Oettinger, some Brussels-funded schemes will have to merge. Examples of these would be the common agricultural policy and cohesion funding.  As a consequence of Brexit, it has been estimated that the EU would face a funding gap of around €22 billion a year after 2020. The Commission made a plea on Monday for the remaining 27 members to increase their contributions from 1 per cent of total EU gross national income to a little over 1.1 per cent. The Commission is due to present its full proposal for the 2021 – 2028 multiannual financial framework in May.  More information can be find on the event page.