Meeting of the Parliament 08 March 2016
I would like to, but I just cannot.
As we normally do on these occasions, I thank the clerks of the Education and Culture Committee and, in particular, I thank the convener, Stewart Maxwell. It was not easy to gain consensus across the committee on the bill. It was fairly complex and difficult to understand; there was very little information, and clarity was way out there on the horizon somewhere. Stewart Maxwell did as well as any convener could in bringing it together at stage 1.
Since 1999, the Parliament has passed significant legislation on issues such as mental health and smoking in public places. Across the political divide, we have often disagreed on the policy approach to addressing problems through legislation, but this is the first time since 1999 that I have found legislation looking for a problem. The cabinet secretary said earlier that she was
“surprised at the level of opposition to the bill from some”.
I have to correct her and say that it was not just some universities; it was every single higher education institution in the whole of Scotland. It is also incredible that the Government’s justification for the bill is that it consulted one man—Professor von Prondzynski. He certainly has a lot to answer for.
As others have said, the code of governance is to be reviewed this year. There is no doubt that progress has been made. Universities Scotland has said that the code has already delivered nearly 400 positive changes, with 72 per cent of universities having two or more student governors and 94 per cent having two or more staff governors. In August this year, we will have 50:50 gender balance for chair positions in Scottish universities, when another woman takes up a place. The 50:50 is happening.
I hope that in the future, when politics students look at this legislation, they do not use the bill as a shining example of what we do. The fact is that, on the face of the bill at stage 2, there was a duty on the universities to advertise on the internet. Thankfully, it has been removed today, but I am quite embarrassed that someone came up with the idea of telling our world-class universities that they have to advertise on the internet. Also on the face of the bill, in primary legislation—it is all there in nice, bright purple—the universities are told to tell people where to get their application forms. It is a little bit embarrassing.
Presiding Officer, I see that you are indicating that I should wind up—I have probably done enough winding up. In concluding, I thank my colleague Liz Smith, who has worked extensively across the sector, consulting and putting forward points of concern for higher education in Scotland.
19:05