Hansard

Miss Goldie has raised that issue before at previous debates in Parliament, and that is a point on which I differ from her. I think that a higher education institution is something far broader than a business, and it is important that the chair or senior lay person is accountable to the governing body but also to that wider community of staff and students.

We talked about the selection process earlier, and that is one of the reasons why I have included in the bill measures that afford institutions the ability to select candidates for election, so that they can demonstrate their ability to drive the further success of our higher education institutions.

I have also listened carefully to concerns about how the new senior lay member might impact on the traditional role of rector. It was never the intention of the Government to abolish the role in those institutions that have a rector, despite the rigorous attempts by some to portray the bill’s measures as such, so at stage 2 I also ensured that measures were included to protect the statutory and historical role of the rector in our ancient universities.

Rectors and senior lay members on the governing bodies of HEIs currently play different but complementary roles. This bill does not change that. With both the roles elected in future, it will be the responsibility of each autonomous institution to ensure that the campus electorate is clear on the dovetail that exists between the two roles. Some stakeholders have raised concerns that students and staff in institutions will be confused about those roles and about what they are voting for, but I have complete faith that students and staff will have little difficulty in working that out.

Next, the bill aims to ensure that the composition of each governing body is representative of the entire campus community. With a majority of lay members, staff members, student members and union members, a fair and balanced blend is created. The bill also ensures that academic boards or senates will feature a majority of elected staff and students, and adequate student representation in particular is very important.

I believe that the bill features a definition of academic freedom that protects the rights of staff while giving institutions a key role in assessing the reasonableness of any expression of academic freedom. That is an important balance, because academic freedom cannot be construed as a licence to break the law.

It is a fact that higher education institutions are autonomous, but in a tough financial settlement the Scottish Government has identified over £1 billion of direct grant investment in Scotland’s higher education sector, which will be delivered next year. Ensuring that access to higher education is free, teaching is of a high quality and research is supported to enable our institutions to contribute to our economic strategy is a price that is well worth paying when it comes to our overall aims of creating a fairer Scotland and a more prosperous economy.

As a society and a Government, we are entitled to expect higher education institutions to adhere to the highest standards of governance, and to be ambitious in seeking ways to continuously improve. Excellence is not a given, so I hope and expect that all of our institutions will embrace the changes that this bill introduces.

At its heart, the bill is about ensuring that all voices on campus are heard, are equal, and are empowered to contribute to decision making. We have heard before—and may hear again from some members today—about how bad an idea campus elections are, and about how talented people will be put off from applying for the post of elected chair or senior lay member. When I was preparing for today’s debate, I was reminded of the 1865 rectorial election at the University of Edinburgh, at which Thomas Carlyle faced up to Benjamin Disraeli. I am sure that members will agree that that was a shortlist that was not lacking in talent.

Thomas Carlyle won that election and gave an inaugural address to the students of the university on 2 April 1866, almost 150 years ago. Of course, there were no women in attendance, as women were not admitted to Scottish universities until 1892. However, I can still whole-heartedly agree with the view that Carlyle expressed in that address that

“universities have, and will continue to have, an indispensable value in society”.

That observation stands the test of time, but the nature of higher education institutions has changed, along with the expectations that students, staff and the public beyond the campus have for them.

This bill represents another step on the journey for our higher education institutions, which continue to be world leaders in teaching and research. It embraces the contributions of all in the campus community to ensure growth, prosperity and greater equality in future. I commend the bill to the Parliament, and I hope that members will support its passage at stage 3.

I move,

That the Parliament agrees that the Higher Education Governance (Scotland) Bill be passed.