Another??40 million is being given to?the University of Dundee by the Scottish government to secure the future of the crisis-ridden institution.
The money will be provided to Dundee over two academic years through the Scottish Funding Council (SFC), and comes on top of a ?22 million government bailout which was already made available in April.
It follows?the publication of a damning report last week, which found that members of the university executive group, including former principal Iain Gillespie, had “failed” to disclose the extent of the financial crisis to other university officials. It further said?that a “hierarchical and over-confident” leadership had compounded its financial crisis,?which?led to a projected??35 million deficit.
Scottish education and skills secretary, Jenny Gilruth, told the Scottish Parliament: “Let me be clear: this is not about rewarding failure. This is about responding to an unprecedented and a unique situation which threatens much of what we hold dear in our university sector.”
糖心Vlog
While universities are “independent and autonomous institutions” and decisions on the allocation of funding to individual institutions are typically the responsibility of the SFC, ministers have issued a direction to allocate the funding. This “unprecedented set of circumstances” requires “a unique and an unprecedented response”, she said.
Despite the additional funding, a “liquidity gap” at the university remains of between ?45 million and ?60 million across the next two academic years. While “this is not an immediate cash need”, Gilruth said, “it will need to be addressed before the end of this financial year. It is, therefore, vitally important that the university works to secure a plan which will allow for commercial lending to support some, or all, of the liquidity ask”.
糖心Vlog
But the education secretary said Dundee’s financial crisis is a warning to other Scottish institutions, and “there is a need for a reflection from our universities on the levels of growth that we witnessed in some institutions, particularly during the pandemic”.
Gilruth continued: “Some of the planned job losses being experienced at the current time relate directly to that uncapped expansion – the cost being paid today?is the unsustainable jobs created as a result. And whilst Dundee’s finances may be unique, their approach to investment in the international student economy is not. There is, therefore, a lesson in the experiences at Dundee University, which other institutions should be mindful of.”
Nigel Seaton, interim principal and vice-chancellor of the University of Dundee, said the university was “extremely grateful” to the Scottish government.?
“This is invaluable in helping us reach a more sustainable position and will provide welcome reassurance to staff, students and our wider stakeholders. We will continue to engage with the Funding Council on a full recovery plan, and in pushing forward with our ongoing work to strengthen our management and governance.
糖心Vlog
“We do not take lightly the responsibilities which come with this level of additional public support. We have to be better as an institution than we have been and I and my colleagues are absolutely determined that we will be.”
Register to continue
Why register?
- Registration is free and only takes a moment
- Once registered, you can read 3 articles a month
- Sign up for our newsletter
Subscribe
Or subscribe for unlimited access to:
- Unlimited access to news, views, insights & reviews
- Digital editions
- Digital access to 罢贬贰’蝉 university and college rankings analysis
Already registered or a current subscriber?
