Committee News Release
CENT 03/2003
Thursday 18 December 2003
ENTERPRISE COMMITTEE CALLS FOR MORE FUNDING
FOR HIGHER EDUCATION
The Executive must pay significantly more for higher education in Scotland if it is to maintain its competitive advantage within the UK, concludes the Scottish Parliament’s Enterprise and Culture Committee in a report today into the implementation of proposals in England to raise tuition fees for higher education.
The Committee’s ‘Scottish Solutions’ inquiry report also comments on the UK Government’s policy process, stating that “the way in which the White Paper was developed and published does not reflect a sound and effective policy making process in the devolved context.”
In January 2003, the UK Government published a White Paper titled ‘The Future of Higher Education’ which set out a strategy for investment and reform of higher education in England. The parliamentary Committee’s ‘Scottish Solutions’ Inquiry aimed to find out whether the proposals would result in a competitive disadvantage for Scottish universities and colleges, and if so, how Scotland should respond.
Commenting on the report, Committee Convener Alasdair Morgan said:
“Whilst we are encouraged that the Executive is reviewing the higher education sector, much of the detail of the proposed implementation of the White Paper is unclear. This has made it very difficult for the Committee to obtain accurate costings and predicted impacts.
“That said, our Committee is united in its belief that the proposals in the White Paper, if implemented in their current form, will have an adverse effect on Scottish higher education, particularly on its research sector. Our institutions have an excellent reputation for the services they offer, and rightly so. Their contribution to the wider Scottish economy cannot be underestimated – nor indeed undermined.”
The findings in the report, which is being copied to all MPs with Scottish constituencies, include:
- If the aspiration is to grow the Scottish economy, the Executive
should significantly increase its investment in higher education in
real terms.
- In providing such additional funding, the strategic importance
of the further education sector must also be addressed.
- In future,
the UK Government should take into account the potential consequences
for Scotland of its proposals and, along with the Scottish
Executive, review and develop protocols and practices to make sure
that this happens.
- Cross-border flows of students are a positive
asset, enriching both individual student experience and the wider student
culture. The
Executive must therefore monitor student numbers to assess the impact
of the changes resulting from the English legislation.
- Scotland’s size and culture makes its universities ideally placed to gain advantage from collaborating on world-class research.
Background
In Scotland, up-front tuition fees were abolished in 2001, and research funding has been concentrated on high quality research wherever it takes place, rather than on particular institutions. The White Paper proposes to allow English universities to charge additional tuition fees up to a limit of £3,000 per year and concentrating research funding on 5 or 6 institutions.
In the Committee’s view, the UK Government White Paper proposals contain three key elements which could lead to a competitive disadvantage for Scottish higher education institutions. These are:
- differential top-up fees: whereby universities in England would be allowed to charge additional tuition fees up to a limit of £3,000 per annum;
- increased selectivity in research funding: including the creation of a 6-star Research Assessment Rating, and the concentration of research funding on five or six institutions;
- a substantial increase in research infrastructure funding: which would be worth £500 million per year by 2004-05.
The full report can
bo found on the Parliament website here: http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/enterprise/reports/elr03-03-01.htm
For further information, the media contact is:
Sally Coyne: 0131 348 6269
Out of hours: 07699 717177
email: sally.coyne@scottish.parliament.uk
For specific committee information contact:
Judith Evans, Direct Tel: 0131 348 5214 (RNID Typetalk calls welcome)
Email: judith.evans@scottish.parliament.uk
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