Edinburgh University bosses warned strikes 'on the horizon' over £140m cuts plan

It has emerged the local branch of the University and College Union (UCU) is consulting its members on its next steps.

This comes after Sir Peter Mathieson, the institution’s principal, revealed the £140m savings target on Tuesday, as he warned “radical” measures must be taken that will “lead to a smaller staff base and lower operating costs”.

A voluntary severance scheme is already open at the university. Sir Peter previously said “nothing is off the table” as part of efforts to stabilise the institution’s finances, raising the prospect of school closures.

UCU members at Dundee University embarked this week on three weeks of strikes over the institution’s failure to rule out compulsory redundancies.

At Edinburgh, the union has already lodged a “failure to agree” notice with the university as a result of its refusal to rule out the use of compulsory redundancies.

Edinburgh UCU branch president Sophia Woodman told The Scotsman: “UCU Edinburgh is adamantly opposed to compulsory redundancies at the University of Edinburgh in the current round of budget cuts.

“The research done by our Joint Unions Finance Working Group shows that this university has more than adequate resources to tide it over any relative downturn in revenue.

“Our union has launched a local dispute to oppose compulsory redundancies, and is currently running a consultative ballot of members on taking industrial action. Industrial action may be on the horizon if management does not reconsider its course of action now.

“We think that there are many other ways to reduce costs at the university, and bringing staff on board as part of that process without the threat of redundancy over their heads could be a much more effective way of addressing the financial context the university faces.”

Edinburgh University previously hit the headlines amid student protests during a UK-wide marking and assessment boycott by members of the UCU union in 2023.

In November last year the institution hired a new interim finance director who describes himself as a “turn-around specialist” with expertise in restructuring and delivering “substantial change”.

At Dundee, staff launched 15 days of strike action on Monday, after almost three-quarters of those voting backed strikes in a UCU ballot, with a turnout of 64 per cent.

Meanwhile, Finance Secretary Shona Robison announced on Tuesday that £15m of financial transactions would be made available to the Scottish Funding Council (SFC) to support the struggling higher education sector. The SFC has recently said public money could be used to help support Dundee University’s recovery.

It came within hours of Sir Peter writing to staff at Edinburgh University to reveal the scale of its savings target.

A University of Edinburgh spokesperson said: “We appreciate – and share – many of the concerns raised by colleagues, students and others in our community. We know how much Edinburgh means to so many.

“However, we have been very clear that the current financial position we are in is not sustainable for the future, and we will be liaising with our unions throughout this process. The actions we must take now, which include both staff and non-staff operating costs, will ensure that we sustain our position as a world-leading university, delivering benefit to society, and emerge stronger as we confront the financial challenges of the sector.”