If you feel like you are experiencing any Coronavirus symptoms, please follow the advice from the National Health Service – found here and NHS Inform. Save Lives, Stay at Home.
Local politicians for Stirling, Alyn Smith MP and Bruce Crawford MSP have called on the UK treasury to allocate additional funding for universities in light of the current situation regarding the Covid-19 pandemic.
The Scottish Government has announced a fund of £75 million to help Scotland’s thirteen universities minimise any financial losses relating to research projects
Some universities have indicated that they will experience financial hardship as a consequence of the pandemic , Professor Nolan , the convener of Universities Scotland has said in a statement that the funding announced by the Scottish Government is “very welcome” however added that :
“Universities are exposed to the financial impact of the pandemic across a number of fronts and whilst they are taking all the mitigation’s they can to manage this within their own institutions, there is still a very considerable financial challenge to address in regard to loss of international tuition fee income.”
Professor Nolan -Convener of Universities Scotland
Earlier this week, SNP MSP for Stirling Bruce Crawford highlighted the issue of support for universities in the Scottish Parliament, in her reply the cabinet secretary for Finance Kate Forbes confirmed that discussions were taking place between the Scottish Government and the UK Treasury to try to secure the relevant funds to support universities.
Commenting on the issue of funding and resources available to universities to help mitigate the impact of Covid 19, Crawford said
“These are incredibly challenging times for everyone, but I know what negative impact this is having on our universities.
Scotland is home to world-class universities and they need to be protected. I welcome the initial £75 million in funding announced by the Scottish Government, this will really help the research element of our universities, but more needs to be done by the UK Treasury to ensure that the wider financial issues are addressed.”
Alyn Smith , the SNP MP for Stirling and a member of the All-Party Parliamentary University Group in the UK parliament said:
“The Scottish Government has announced new funding for our universities to address the financial strain they’re under. The UK government now needs to get serious about the situation these institutions find themselves in.”
Commenting specifically on the university, Smith stated “The University of Stirling is known across the world for its work in sports, economics and medicine – to name just a few areas. They will seriously have to consider severe redundancies and course closures if they do not get the support that they need.”
Smith also urged the UK Government and treasury to “follow the Scottish Government example, release the funds to enable that support and protect Scotland’s universities amid this crisis.”
If you feel like you are experiencing any Coronavirus symptoms, please follow the advice from the National Health Service – found here and NHS Inform. Save Lives, Stay at Home.
Feature image credit: Stirling SNP
