Labour: College cash cuts are brutal

Budget cuts have left college funding 10% lower than it was just over a decade ago, Labour claimed yesterday.

Labour education spokesman Iain Gray accused the SNP of having “hammered” colleges with “brutal” budget cuts.

Under Scottish Government budget plans, colleges will receive £664.9 million in 2018/19, with £558.2 million of this going on day-to-day running costs, and a further £76.7 million for capital investment.

That is down from a total of £739.6 million spending on further education in 2007/08.

Mr Gray said: “The SNP claimed that education was their ‘top priority’ but further education is bottom of the pile - without a dedicated minister in Government and having been hammered by 11 years of brutal cuts.

“A real-terms cut of £75 million to Scotland’s colleges will have cut off opportunities for thousands of working-class young people and people seeking to learn new skills later in life. It is a disgraceful record from the nationalists.”

A Scottish Government spokesman said: “Scotland’s colleges are key to our future economic prosperity.the 2018/19 budget will increase overall college funding by £66.2 million to £664.9 million, which equates to a 9.4% increase in real terms.”