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Scotland's college mergers plans 'incoherent', EIS warns Scotland's university leaders urge rethink on £9,000 fees cap
(about 4 hours later)
Legislation to reform Scotland's colleges could create a "nationally incoherent" system of further education, a union has claims. University leaders are calling on the Scottish government to rethink plans to bring in a cap on fees for students in the rest of the UK.
The Educational Institute of Scotland (EIS) has criticised the "complexity" of the changes proposed by the Scottish government. Institutions north of the border voluntarily agreed to charge students from England, Wales and Northern Ireland up to £9,000 each year.
The href="http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/parliamentarybusiness/Bills/56717.aspx" >Post-16 Education (Scotland) Bill aims to regionalise further education. The Scottish government wants that agreement enshrined in law.
The Scottish government said it would provide flexibility to govern colleges and save £50m a year. Bodies representing academics and students have voiced their objections to no cap on fees.
The limit was introduced to bring fees for non-Scottish UK students into line with those charged by institutions across the rest of the country.
In a submission to the education committee at Holyrood, the Committee of Scottish Chairs, which represents the 12 governing bodies of universities in Scotland, said the legislation was unnecessary.
The body has not indicated that it would want to charge more than the £9,000 currently in place.
It said: "In setting the level of fees, universities must take into account the cost of providing courses and the desire to attract students.
"It is inconceivable that any governing body should set its fees at such a level that students would be discouraged from applying. The chairs, therefore, believe that this section [of the Post-16 Education (Scotland) Bill] is unnecessary."
Representatives from University and College Union Scotland and the National Union of Students (NUS) Scotland were asked about the chairs' comments during an evidence session to the committee.
Mary Senior, Scottish official for University and College Union Scotland, said: "We do feel very strongly about this introduction of a market into Scottish higher education."
She told MSPs that the "least worst option" was to set a flat-rate fee for RUK (Rest of UK) students across the sector, to prevent them from being seen as a "cash cow" as "potentially they are now".
Robin Parker, president of NUS Scotland, said Holyrood's fee cap "goes beyond even the worst excesses of what the Westminster government is proposing", with degrees costing as much as £36,000 for RUK students in Scotland.
He told the committee that legislation was needed and a lower cap should be introduced.
Mr Parker added: "We've seen the creation of a market, and a market needs regulation.
"That means that we need the fee cap to be brought lower and we need greater rules and greater conditions around bursaries."
Alastair Sim, director of Universities Scotland, said: "They [the chairs] don't see a need for the fee cap to be enshrined in legislation, but I don't think anybody is arguing that universities should be charging fees that are ahead of the maximum elsewhere in the UK.
'Reduce duplication'
In other evidence to the committee, the Educational Institute of Scotland (EIS) criticised the "complexity" of the education changes proposed in the bill by the Scottish government.
Ministers said it would provide flexibility to govern colleges and save £50m a year.
The bill includes;The bill includes;
  • plans to regionalise further education - which ministers argue will eventually make efficiency savings of £50m each year
  • improving governance and ensuring courses are suited to employers' needs
  • requirement for universities to do more to widen access for young people from deprived areas
  • and a proposed cap to limit the fees for students from the rest of the UK to the same level as their home country.
  • plans to regionalise further education - which ministers argue will eventually make efficiency savings of £50m each year
  • improving governance and ensuring courses are suited to employers' needs
  • requirement for universities to do more to widen access for young people from deprived areas
  • and a proposed cap to limit the fees for students from the rest of the UK to the same level as their home country.
Education Secretary Mike Russell said the reforms in the bill would "reduce the duplication of 41 college administrations".Education Secretary Mike Russell said the reforms in the bill would "reduce the duplication of 41 college administrations".
But the EIS, which represents college lecturers, said in a statement to Holyrood's education committee: "If it's the government's wish to create a nationally incoherent FE (further education) structure with a myriad of different types of colleges, governing bodies and funding mechanisms with separate regulations for each, then this bill is the way to go about it.But the EIS, which represents college lecturers, said in a statement to Holyrood's education committee: "If it's the government's wish to create a nationally incoherent FE (further education) structure with a myriad of different types of colleges, governing bodies and funding mechanisms with separate regulations for each, then this bill is the way to go about it.
"The complexity of the proposed structure will confound all but employees and public policy experts.""The complexity of the proposed structure will confound all but employees and public policy experts."
The union claimed the government had "failed to give staff and staff trade unions a larger role to play in colleges and their governance, which will not help the success of these reforms".
David Belsey, the EIS's national officer for further and higher education, will raise concerns when he gives evidence to the committee later.
Different regions
Mr Russell announced last year that he wanted to see one college in each region, with each region run by one governing body.
The EIS said such a change would "hopefully produce a regional level of coherence but may fail to deliver a nationally coherent FE system".
A Scottish government spokesman said: "The EIS has been supportive of our plans to modernise college governance.
"Our proposals allow for different approaches in different regions, allowing colleges the flexibility to determine the structure that best meets the needs of students and employers in their region."