On Wednesday 29 January, the Scottish branch of the Universities and Colleges Union Scotland (UCU) conducted a rally to protest the decline in funding for higher education.
Assembled outside of the Scottish parliament at Holyrood, figures from the union, as well as members of the Scottish parliament, gave speeches on the declining funding for higher education in Scotland and the UK.
The majority of criticism was directed towards the SNP and the Scottish Government, who have overseen an erosion of the real terms funding per student over the last decade and have been criticised for seemingly neglecting struggling universities across Scotland.
The rally was organised by UCU Scotland and was supported by UCU branches from across the country, as well as students, joining passers-by, and members of the Socialist Workers’ Party.
The Student conducted an interview with the President of UCU Edinburgh branch, Sophia Woodman, who gave an overview of the context behind the rally, and its agenda on the day.
“Today is about asking the Scottish government to step up… the immediate point is the decline in funding,” Sophia told The Student.
“Staff and students are here today because the toxic combination of marketisation of higher education and declining public funding is damaging and destroying higher education in Scotland. We’re insisting the Scottish government needs to step up to increase its investment in higher education, which is a public good with value that goes far beyond narrow economic metrics.”
Woodman also criticised University of Edinburgh Principal and Vice-Chancellor, Sir Peter Mathieson for advocating that free tuition for Scottish students be scrapped.
“The Union are committed to free tuition for all, and where it exists, we certainly want to maintain it.”
“Furthermore, the University of Edinburgh is technically a charitable organisation, and yet Peter Mathieson has gone on record multiple times, and written multiple essays, claiming that the Scottish government should end free tuition for Scottish students.” Woodman questioned whether such political lobbying was appropriate for the head of a charity.
The overall sentiment at the rally was one of equal frustration with both the higher-ups in UK universities, and those in the Scottish government.
The various speakers at the demonstration, from the union and the four opposition parties in Scottish parliament, shared a common complaint, namely that teachers and students have been neglected by the government for too long.
In her speech, MSP and Shadow Secretary for Education, Pam Duncan-Glancy, mentioned the importance of students in society.
“These are not just university courses, they are not just credits, they are not just numbers. These are students, these are qualifications, and these are the future.”
With the Scottish budget and spending plans currently under review, the impact of union and student campaigning remains to be seen.
“UCU rally Glasgow” by marsupium photography is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0.