Dundee University principal says it could close if jobs aren't cut

Dundee University principal Shane O’Neill says that without the 632 job cuts announced on Tuesday the institution could simply cease to exist.

After a tense presentation to staff where he set out the scale of the £35 million deficit, the interim principal sat down with The Courier in his office.

He admitted he had considered his suitability to take the recovery forward, given he was a senior member of the university executive when mistakes were made.

But he’s concluded – despite staff saying they have no confidence – that he is the right person to lead.

Dundee University job losses — Staff were told about the potential job losses at a tense meetinig. Image: Mhairi Edwards/DC Thomson.

Asked about the scale of the cuts and potential alternatives, the Irish political theorist said the university faced three scenarios.

The first is the path it is now on: significantly reducing the 3,250 jobs and resizing to live within its means.

University ‘could cease to exist’

“Scenario B would be to break the institution up or to merge it,” Mr O’Neill said, insisting this would leave the university unrecognisable.

He added: “We’re trying to avoid that, but it is a reality that if we don’t succeed in delivering a full recovery, we could be facing that kind of scenario.

“Scenario C is the least palatable of all for the city, and for everyone who wants anything good for this university, which is that we just cease to exist.”

The interim principal admitted mistakes had previously been made, including “inadequate” financial control and poor capital planning and investment choices.

Sector-wide challenge

But he said the university might have been able to bounce back if not for the structural funding problems in the sector.

Universities say the current funding settlement for Scottish students is inadequate. Analysis suggests there has been a 22% real-terms cut to home student funding since 2013-14.

Mr O’Neill said: “We aren’t given sufficient money to deliver on the kind of teaching for Scottish students that we deliver or the research that we do.

“We have to compensate for that through other means, primarily through international tuition fees.

“When another policy area changes that leaves us really vulnerable.

“So this has been a sector wide problem for quite a while, and I think, some of the institution specific reasons for the crisis we’re in, we would be able to bounce back more easily if those problems of structural underfunding weren’t there in the first place.

The principal spoke to The Courier after his announcement. Image: Kim Cessford/DC Thomson.

“I think it is something that the country needs to get to grips with. There are serious problems with the university sector and how it’s funded.

“That isn’t a problem just for universities. It’s a problem for society in general.”

The majority of the job cuts will fall among “professional services” staff. These are non-academic support roles, normally filled by locals and those who may find it hard to find employment elsewhere.

Mr O’Neill said he recognised this balance would have a significant impact on the city.

“We are very conscious of our role in the city.

“We’re a key employer, a key kind of driver of development in the city.

“So when we come to a situation like this where we have to do things that have a negative impact on the city, it is very painful, but we have to get it right for the organisation itself.

“You have to protect income generating activity.”