Select committee: Scottish Affairs Committee
Conclusion 28
First Report - Universities and Scotland
Published 28 May 2021
Addressed to Scotland Office
Scottish Affairs Committee Universities and Scotland All items in this report Report on parliament.uk ↗ Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗
Conclusion (the committee's words)
The covid-19 pandemic affected the higher education sector in Scotland to such an extent that a number of interventions were required by both the UK and Scottish Governments in 2020 and 2021. These are detailed in the table below (up to and including April 2021). 45 Audit Scotland, Finances of Scottish universities, September 2019, page 9 46 Audit Scotland, Finances of Scottish universities, September 2019, page 18 47 Audit Scotland, Finances of Scottish universities, September 2019, page 19 48 Audit Scotland, Finances of Scottish universities, September 2019, para 39 49 Audit Scotland, Finances of Scottish universities, September 2019, page 17 50 Scottish Parliament, The impact of Coronavirus (COVID-19) on university funding in Scotland (23 July 2020), p 11 51 Scottish Parliament, The impact of Coronavirus (COVID-19) on university funding in Scotland (23 July 2020), p 3 Universities and Scotland 15 Date of Intervention Detail of intervention announcement made by April 2020 UK Government A UK-wide (but not higher education-specific) Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme. The scheme enabled any employer in the UK to seek a grant to cover 80% of the salary of retained (but furloughed) workers up to a total of £2,500 per person per month.52 April 2020 Scottish £5 million emergency financial support for Government students facing hardship as a result of the pandemic. £2.2 million of this was allocated to the Higher Education Discretionary Fund and made available to colleges and universities.53 May 2020 UK Government A support package for universities and students which included: – Temporary student numbers controls – An additional 10,000 student places at the discretion of the UK Government (with 5,000 of those ring-fenced for nursing, midwifery or allied health courses) – £100 million of funding brought forward for research – £2.6 billion of tuition fee payments brought forward The package did not include any additional funding but brought forward some existing income strea
From: Scottish Affairs Committee, First Report - Universities and Scotland (HC 54), 28 May 2021
Government response
The government responded to the whole report on 27 April 2022 (deadline 28 July 2021).
Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.The government's response sets out continued work with the devolved administrations and existing UK-wide policies on international students, immigration, research funding and talent, and states it will submit a response to the earlier Immigration and Scotland report "shortly".
- On the Turing Scheme, it confirmed funding for three years, including "£110 million for the 2022/23 Academic Year". It states the scheme "prioritises pupils, students and learners over staff and inward mobility funding", and says the first year's impact will be evaluated.
- On Erasmus+, it states that President Von Der Leyen "has previously confirmed that association by part of a country is not legally possible".
- On UKRI, it states that Board appointees "are not recruited to represent any constituency, sector or regional grouping", while a legal requirement to have regard to research conditions in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland is taken into account. It says Research England's place on the Executive Committee reflects its status as a legal component of UKRI.
- On visa costs, it states that "UK visa fees are broadly in line with our competitors" and that it will "continue to keep visa fees under review".