Minister defends decision to not raise tuition fees as UU announces redundancies

Stormont Economy Minister Caoimhe Archibald has defended not raising university fees in Northern Ireland as Ulster University faces redundancies.

The region’s biggest university is set to make around 450 staff redundant.

It currently has more than 30,000 students and employs 3,100 staff across its campuses in Belfast, Jordanstown, Coleraine and Londonderry.

On Wednesday, a university spokesperson said redundancies across the higher education sector have become unavoidable because of the current funding model.

Ms Archibald said her thoughts are with the university staff and their families.

Asked on BBC Radio Ulster if raising tuition fees could have made a difference, Ms Archibald pointed out that universities in Britain are facing “similar challenges”.

“We have seen thousands of redundancies across universities in Britain where students are charged twice as much in relation to tuition fees,” she said.

“The common issue in relation to that is that institutions are not being properly funded by the British Government in terms of being able to deliver, and that’s the challenge facing the (Stormont) Executive.

“The issue that we have seen yesterday in terms of the announcement by Ulster University, that’s the real world consequences of the Executive not being properly funded.”

She added: “We don’t believe that putting additional pressure on students is the way to deliver.

“I believe that our public services should be properly funded, and we need to continue to engage with the British Government to ensure that that is the case.

“Hiking tuition fees, that’s not a benign choice when you see the issues in relation to student loans and repayments and the interest rate which we have seen play out in Britain.

“It has real world consequences for people down the line as well.

“Those are the choices that are in front of me as Economy Minister in ensuring we get the balance right in terms of where the burden falls.

“We want to be able to invest in our universities, in that case the Executive needs to be properly funded and I will continue to fight that case, alongside with my Executive colleagues, with the British Government.”

The trade union Unite, which represents more than 300 non-teaching staff across all university campuses, has urged Stormont ministers to act, describing the planned redundancies as a “huge and unexpected blow to staff and the wider regional economy”.

Its workforce representatives are to meet later to discuss their next steps in response to the announcement.

Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said the responsibility to safeguard the jobs lies with Stormont.

“The scale of this announcement came without any warning. Hundreds of workers with decades of commitment face the threat of losing their livelihoods,” she said.

“The responsibility to safeguard these jobs and the future of the university lies with management and Stormont.

“Unite will fully support its members affected by these cuts and all possible options are on the table.”