Academics sign letter urging MSPS to act over universities ‘crisis’
More than 100 professors have signed a letter urging the Scottish Parliament to intervene in a "crisis" facing universities.
A joint letter signed by 111 Edinburgh University academics urges MSPS to launch an inquiry into how staff and student confidence can be restored.
It also asks for Edinburgh's principal, Peter Mathieson, to be called before Holyrood.
Writing in The Times, David Farrier, a professor of literature and the environment, said: "Staff morale is lower than ever, eroded by job insecurity, gendered and racial disparities in pay and unsustainable workloads.
"Students' education suffers when lecturers have to worry about paying the rent.
"Meanwhile, university leaders fixate on driving through unjustified pension cuts that will see members of the Universities Superannuation
Scheme (USS) lose on average more than a third of their retirement income."
He said higher education institutions face a choice between "a future in which our universities remain among the best in the world or one in which only those with a private income can afford to pursue an academic career".
The letter, which was sent to Education Secretary Shirleyanne Somerville and Jamie Hepburn, the higher education minister, states: "We are deeply concerned about the future of higher education in Scotland.
"We request that [you] look into this matter, and that the education, children and young people committee holds a full inquiry into how Scotland's universities are managed, and how staff and student confidence can be restored.
"We also ask the Scottish Parliament to call Edinburgh's principal, Peter Mathieson, to appear before parliament to explain why there is no end in sight to this crisis."
A spokeswoman for Edinburgh University said it was listening to concerns around the USS pension scheme.
She said: "As one of 340 institutions who offer the scheme to their staff, we are limited in what we can do on these nationally negotiated issues.
She added: "We are not complacent and are committed to securing a long-term outcome for the USS pension that is fair, affordable and sustainable for both individuals and employers.”