Edinburgh Vice Chancellor and Principal Sir Peter Matheison received a £20,000 pay rise earlier this year despite presiding over a number of high-profile controversies in 2023.
According to The Scotsman, Mathieson’s pay increased by five per cent in line with an increase given to all staff.
Sir Peter, who was paid £418,000 in 2023, has the largest salary in Scottish higher education and more than double the First Minister’s salary of £176,780.
The Principal’s salary is decided by the Remuneration Committee each January, which is devolved from the University Court.
UCU Edinburgh President Sophia Woodman told The Student that the decision to increase his pay in line with staff showed “a staggering level of disregard”.
“The university already spends so much on him and his elite lifestyle, paying for his grace and favour townhouse, including staff and utility bills, and business class flights,” she added.
Sir Peter lives rent and utility free in a house on Regent Street in New Town. In October 2022, the university paid over £17,900 for council tax, rent, utilities, cleaning and the maintenance of an Aga Cooker oven.
After assuming the role in 2018, Mathieson refused a pay rise in 2019, 2020, and 2022.
The revelation follows the announcement of strict restrictions on new hires and reduced spending “in all areas” in an all-staff email in July 2024 after the university failed to meet its student recruitment targets for 2023-2024.
Mathieson told staff that the decline in admitted students were “a shortfall against our projected tuition fee income”, which he partially attributed to rising costs and decreased demand from high fee paying international students.
“the largest salary in Scottish higher education and more than double the First Minister’s salary”
Janet Legrand OBE KC (Hon), senior lay member of the University Court, said that the Principal “is not present” during discussions and decisions on his salary. However, salary rises are based on meetings the Principal has with the court based on an annual review.
Despite inflation, the university’s income rose by a record £1.4 billion during 2023, which Director of Finance Lee Hamill described in last year’s annual report as giving the institution “a sound financial base”.
The university’s global outreach as well as the development of the Edinburgh Futures Institute and the city’s BioQuarter were listed by Mathieson in the report as particular success stories.
However, Mathieson has also faced criticism from students and staff.
Edinburgh University Student’s Association (EUSA) passed a motion in November 2023 requiring it to support calls for the resignation of Sir Peter.
The motion obtained 95 per cent approval leading EUSA to pledge to “lobby for a new approach from Senior Leaders to address the growing issues at this university”.
Reacting the the news of Mathieson’s January pay rise, EUSA’s Sabbatical Officer’s told The Student that:
“Given the current context of budget cuts, particularly with staff and students being affected so acutely, it is frustrating to see that the University devoted money to increase the Principal’s salary.”
The EUSA vote came amidst the university’s successful hosting of a screening of “Adult Human Female” in November 2023 – a film described as “transphobic” in statements by the Staff Pride Network and University of Edinburgh Feminist Society.
Previous attempts to show the film in December 2022 and April 2023 were stopped after student protests. Additional security was hired by the university so the film could be screened on a third attempt.
Matheison said students who tried to prevent the screenings would be “investigated” by the university.
Some staff members were described in the report as crying at their desks
One month later, an independent report criticised the rollout of the university’s People and Money HR system after IT problems in 2022 led to a backlog in pay for staff, students, and suppliers.
Some staff members cried at their desks over the payment backlog according to the report.
The university was forced to offer an “urgent and profound” apology in 2022 and paid the supplier an additional £8 million for additional improvements.
Staff and students were also impacted by University and Colleges Union’s (UCU) Marking and Assessment boycott across the entire United Kingdom announced on 23 May 2023.
Matheison said those staff participating in the boycott would receive a 50 per cent pay deduction.
The boycott led to student’s degrees going unmarked at the time of their graduation and a significant delay to grading assessments.
In the 2023 NSS student survey, 30 per cent of final-year undergraduate students said that they were dissatisfied with their experience at the university.
Sir Peter did not show up at graduations due to public backlash despite his role in overseeing the ceremonies.
Sir Peter was knighted by King Charles III for services to higher education as part of the 2023 New Years Honours list.
A spokesperson for the university told The Student that the senior leadership’s January 2024 salary rise reflected the five per cent pay increase negotiated between the Universities and Colleges Employers Association (UCEA) and trade unions in 2023.
They added that it will be for the Remuneration Committee to decide in January 2025 whether he should receive the 2.5 per cent increase negotiated by the UCEA earlier this year.
Image via The University of Edinburgh.