THE Scottish Government has announced an emergency £15 million loan to the University of Dundee to help keep the institution afloat.
Finance Secretary and the SNP’s MSP for Dundee City East, Shona Robison, unveiled the financial package in the SNP administration’s spending plans at Holyrood on Tuesday.
The University of Dundee has been struggling to deal with a £30 million black hole in its finances which emerged last November.
There have been fears that as many as 500 jobs could be lost as bosses at the institute try to balance the books.
Lecturers and other staff at the university began 15 days of strike action on Monday over the threat of job cuts which include compulsory redundancies.
According to reports, the £15m government package will help the university bridge the gap while an action plan is put in place for a long-term solution to the £30m deficit.
A Dundee University spokesperson told the Courier: “We welcome the announcement of extra funding for the sector.
“We understand that it will be for the Scottish Funding Council to make decisions about how the additional funding is allocated, and we are continuing to engage closely with them on the development of our financial recovery plan and moving to a more sustainable future.”
UCU general secretary, Jo Grady, has called on Ministers elsewhere in the UK to “take heed” and find funding for other struggling education institutes.
She said “This is a step in the right direction and the Scottish Government is to be commended for supporting the university at this time.
“Ministers elsewhere in the UK need to take heed and find funding to stop the cull on jobs and courses.
“For Dundee University this gives a financial injection that should allow the employer to take compulsory redundancies off the table.
“Doing that would allow UCU to stop the current strike at the university and the ball is now in managers’ hands.”
